Sky Summit Odyssey
by 8-Bit Eevee
Summary: Follow the adventure of a young shiny Eevee, who as it turns out, shares the power of the Shaymin of Sky Summit! Read along as she learns of her abilities, begins to use them, and eventually, how to control them.
1. Chapter 1

**New story! I thought about it some more, and now I can't decide if I want this one to be long or short. I have a general plot thought of, and from the way I'm imagining it, I think this fanfic will turn out to be decently lengthed. If you end up enjoying this story more than One After Another, then just say so. Whichever one is the favorite will probably receive more frequent updates, at least until this fanfic is finished. Oh right, one more thing. I'm still working on the cover picture, so you'll have to wait a bit on that. Sorry.**

**I do not own Pokemon, this story is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of Fly Away From Fate with the follow button, and give it some reviews as well! If you have time, take a look at One After Another too! Enjoy!**

**Oops sorry, there's just one more thing. If you want the real first chapter, you'll have to check "Bonus Chapter 3" of my other story, One After Another for it. Because I'm too lazy to copy paste it over here.**

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Veeria yelped as she tripped on a tree root, causing her to land painfully and drop a leaf wrap. She whimpered from the stinging pain and sat up, groaning when she saw that her berries had rolled everywhere. With a sigh, she re-collected as many as she could, wrapping them once again in the large oak leaf.

The little Eevee shook her silvery fur and picked up the wrap in her jaws. She continued on her way, carefully watching the ground in front of her. When she finally made it into the clearing and back to the roots of a massive tree, she set down the wrap and sighed, looking out of the den.

'It's been a whole month since Shadow last came…' she thought. 'And the last time he came was when he first brought me here…' Veeria sighed again. The tree she lived within seemed to sense her distress.

"_What's wrong, little one?"_ the voice, which Veeria knew all too well, echoed.

"It's Shadow…" Veeria replied with a sigh. "I want to see him again… But big brother never comes." There was silence for a short moment, causing Veeria to think that the tree didn't want to respond.

_"On the contrary, little Veeria, I think Shadow is closer than you think,"_ said the voice of a Veeria long forgotten by many.

"Really?" Veeria asked, her ears perking up. She listened carefully to the sounds of the forest, trying to listen past the rustling of leaves and whisper of wind for Shadow. Soon enough, she caught it.

"Veeria?" came a distant call. Veeria's eyes lit up as she dashed out of her den, heading towards the source of the noise. "Veeria? Where are you?" the call came again, a little louder this time.

"I'm coming, big brother!" she exclaimed happily. As soon as the Umbreon came into sight, she leaped and tackled him to the ground, ending up on top. "Shadow! You finally came to visit!" Shadow smiled.

"Sorry, Veeria, I've been really busy lately," he apologized. Veeria got off of him and began jumping around him excitedly. Shadow got up and shook the dirt from his fur. "You're not the shy little Eevee I remember, little sister," he said with a smile.

"Well I like you!" she yipped. Shadow chuckled.

"So then why did you tackle me?" he asked.

"Because I was excited!" Veeria answered. Then her smile disappeared and her ears drooped. "Did I hurt you?" she asked, looking at the ground. Shadow shook his head.

"You couldn't hurt a fly little sister," he teased. Veeria looked up at him and fake pouted, only making her look cuter.

"Yes I could!" she protested. Shadow laughed.

"So what do you want to do, now that I'm here?" he asked. Veeria looked up.

"I don't know," she said. "I only wanted to see you so I didn't think of what I wanted to do when you got here…"

"How about we-"

"I know!" Veeria interrupted. "I want to climb the giant tree!" Shadow looked skeptical.

"I don't know about that…" he said. "It's dangerous…"

"Please? Please can I?" she asked repeatedly, jumping around Shadow's legs. Shadow shook his head.

"What if you fall?" he asked.

"I've done it before!" she whined. Shadow shook his head again. Veeria sniffed and looked up at him with the largest eyes and cutest look she could muster. She faked a few tears to make herself look even more endearing.

"…Okay fine," Shadow agreed with a sigh. Veeria yipped and ran off towards her den. "Be careful Veeria!" he shouted after her.

"Aren't you coming too?" came the reply. Shadow smiled and took off after her. By the time he got into the clearing, Veeria was already a good ways up the tree, on one of the lower branches.

"Come on Shadow!" she called, giggling. "You're such a slowpoke!" Shadow grinned.

"What was that?" he called out, before charging up the trunk, latching on with his claws. He began to make his way up the tree, only to find that he kept slipping down to the bottom. He growled in frustration and looked up at Veeria, who was even higher up now.

"How are you climbing so fast?" Shadow shouted.

"How are you climbing so slow?" Veeria replied. Shadow could hear her giggles from where he was. Shadow smiled and tried climbing again, successfully this time. After a few minutes of struggling, sliding, and clawing, he finally made it up to the lowest branch and sat on it, catching his breath.

"Come on big brother!" Veeria shouted down. Shadow looked up to see her small figure sitting on a branch very high above him. Shadow took another deep breath before resuming his climb.

"Coming!" he called back as he clawed slowly up the massive tree. After a little while longer, he had to rest again. He sat on the branch, panting, as he looked up.

"You're so slow!" Veeria complained. Shadow sighed and got ready to keep climbing, until he made a mistake. He looked down. He gulped and his legs began to shake as he saw how far off the ground he was.

"V-Veeria I'm g-going to go back!" he told her.

"Are you scared?" she taunted.

"Yes!" Shadow admitted. He had a fear of heights. "I'm going to go down! Be careful and get down here soon, okay Veeria?!" he began his slow descent, wincing every time his claws so much as slipped half an inch.

Shadow screamed as he lost his balance and began sliding down the tree. He managed to grip back on with his claws, and he hung there for a few minutes, shaking. His heart was pounding so loudly that he felt like Veeria would be able to hear it.

Shadow began descending again, speeding up as he neared the ground. He couldn't wait to be back on the solid earth. He jumped down when he was low enough and practically collapsed on the ground, sighing with relief.

He decided to take a rest inside Veeria's den. He lay in the wooden cavern, completely exhausted. Before he knew it, he was asleep.

Veeria climbed higher and higher. She looked down and smiled when she saw how far away the ground was. She giggled as she thought of how slow and scared Shadow had been. Then she looked back above her and continued to climb.

She stopped for a rest on one of the highest branches. Veeria scooted to the very edge of the branch, which was able to support her small body. She took another look at the ground. She was so high, that it seemed to be a little foggy down there.

Veeria grinned and scrambled back to the wood. She went on with her climbing, getting closer and closer to the top of the tree. Soon, she was breathing hard and her muscles were aching, but she didn't stop to rest. She wanted to get to the top and she wanted it badly.

Veeria gave one huge breath of exhaustion as she burst out from the leaves covering the peak of the tree. She clung to the highest portion, feeling the tree sway in tandem with the wind. She giggled with glee and stared up at the sky. It was so close that she felt like she could touch it.

Veeria reached out a small paw, grabbing for the clouds. They were so big and so puffy from up there. She smiled and looked down, seeing the tree line, the edge of the forest, and beyond. Way in the distance there was a big city. She couldn't see anything beyond that.

She looked back up at the sky again. It was so blue, so endless. The clouds, huge from where she was, hung lazily in it, like daytime stars. Her eyes sparkled as she watched the sky. Oh how she loved the sky.

Veeria sighed in contentment as she clung to the wood, her fur whipping around her in the wind. She giggled as some of her fur slapped her in the face, getting in her eyes and mouth. Her silvery fur seemed like clouds to her as she batted it around in the wind.

However, as Veeria was giggling and laughing in complete happiness, she didn't notice a flock of Spearow flying straight at her. Then she felt the pierce of multiple beaks on her body, causing her to scream and lose her balance. As she was falling, the Spearow relentlessly pecked at her body, adding to the pain of crashing through leaves and into branches.

Veeria screamed at the top of her lungs as her body was endlessly racked with pain, from both the attacks of pokemon and the pain of crashing into the wood. Thankfully, the branches slowed her fall a bit. When she finally hit the ground, she screamed again, louder than she had ever screamed before. Her shoulder had broken. And the pain was terrible, but she didn't black out. So she lay on the ground, screaming, as she endured the pain from her shoulder and the pain from the Spearow still attacking her.

"SHADOW!" she screamed helplessly, tears flowing out of her eyes. "PLEASE HELP ME!" No response. Veeria sobbed and screamed, wishing that she would just pass out. Her heart was beating so quickly with fear that she felt like it would explode.

Veeria writhed under the relentless Spearow, even though that only caused her shoulder to hurt even more. "PLEASE HELP!" she screamed, unable to do anything but wait for either her death or for someone to help her. "SHADOW!"

Shadow awoke to hear Veeria screaming and Spearow cawing. His eyes widened and he dashed out of the den, only for his jaw to drop and his eyes to widen even more. Veeria lay on the ground, bruised and broken, her shoulder hanging strangely. Spearow pecked at her, causing blood to flow from many spots on her small body, staining her silver fur red.

He growled as blood rushed to his head. Arceus, was he mad. First, he used protect to shield Veeria from any more attacks, then a pitch black aura, imbued with all the terrible thoughts Shadow had inside of him, emanated from his body and washed over the Spearow. Some of them managed to avoid it, but the ones that weren't so unlucky dropped to the ground, killed on contact.

The remaining Spearow dived at him. Shadow didn't know if they were brave or stupid, all he knew was that they were going to die. Shadow's eyes glowed white as he used a specialty move of his: Psychic. The Spearow all glowed a faint blue, before they were suddenly crushed under immense telekinetic force. They died instantly, their internals reduced to mush, but Shadow wasn't done yet. He increased the force, reducing the pieces of trash to nothing.

The barrier around Veeria vanished. Shadow ran over to her. She was laying there, whimpering and shaking, her eyes buried in her paws as she cried. Blood gushed out of her wounds, now forming a small puddle, and her shoulder seemed to be broken as well.

"S- Sha- Shad- dow…" she sobbed.

"I'm here Veeria," he murmured. "You'll be okay."

"H-Help m-me… I-It h-hurts so m- much..." she cried helplessly. Shadow stroked her small body with his bushy tail to calm her down.

"Calm down Veeria… I can't help you until you're calmed…" he told her. She nodded as her sobs soon were reduced to quiet sniffles and shakes. "That's better," he said quietly.

"S-Shadow?" Veeria asked. "A-Am I… g-going to die?" Shadow shook his head.

"No, Veeria," he assured her. "You'll be okay. You're very lucky to still be alive." He began his work on healing her, using moonlight, the only healing move he knew. Although it wasn't very useful, seeing as how it was still daytime, it took away enough of the pain from Veeria for even her whimpering to stop, now replaced by shaky breaths.

"B-Big brother… M- My… My shoulder h-hurts…" she whimpered.

"That's because it's broken," he told her quietly. "But I can fix it. It'll be okay." Veeria sniffed, wiping away a tear with her good paw.

"R-Really?" she asked. Shadow nodded and placed his paws on her shoulder.

"I'm going to give it a strong jerk to put it back in place," he told her. "It will hurt a lot, but you'll feel much better later." Veeria gave a shaky nod, bracing herself. Shadow took a sharp breath and yanked, shoving the bone in place. For a second, Veeria was silent, until she screamed as loud as her little lungs would allow, her eyes rolling to the back of her head.

"SHADOW!" she screamed, tears flowing again. "IT HURTS!" Shadow, again, stroked the writhing Eevee with his tail, trying to calm her down.

"Veeria… It'll go away. You need to be strong," he assured her. Veeria continued to thrash and scream. She squirmed around like that for a full three minutes before finally settling down a bit. Her screams quieted to whimpers and her spontaneous jerking settled to shakes and twitches.

"There… See, it's better now, right?" he asked. Veeria sniffed and nodded.

"M-My… My sh-shoulder still hurts…" she whimpered. Shadow nodded.

"That's because it's broken," he quietly told her. "It needs time to mend." Veeria blinked away a few tears.

"C-Can't y-you… do something?" she asked hopefully. Shadow thought about it.

"I can try something. But if it hurts too much, and you want me to stop, just say so," he told her, getting ready. Veeria nodded.

Shadow's eyes glowed white. Soft blue light surrounded Veeria's shoulder as her bones began to shift. Veeria began screaming again, causing Shadow to falter. "Do you want me to stop?" he asked. Veeria shook her head. He nodded and continued. The fracture straightened itself and aligned with her bone, the way it should align. By the time he was done, there was no sign it was broken.

"Okay Veeria, now we just have to wait," he said. "I can't make new bone. So we need to wait." Veeria nodded, the last of the pain fading away, to be replaced with a dull, barely bearable ache.

"O-Okay," she gulped. "B-Big brother, c-can you help me to my den?" Shadow nodded.

"Of course, little sister," he replied, gently picking up the shiny little Eevee with the weakest psychic he could use. He maneuvered her to the den made of roots and set her down on the soft ground.

Shadow sighed and listened to Veeria's whimpers get quieter, eventually fading away for her to breathe normally. He was starting to feel tired, and his eyelids drooped.

"S-Shadow?" Veeria asked. His eyes snapped open.

"Yes?"

"Th-Thank you…" she mumbled as her eyes closed and she drifted into sleep. Shadow smiled as his own eyes closed, tiredness overtaking him. "You're welcome."

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**Whew. I feel like Shadow is just going to end up getting dropped from the entire story. Ehh we'll see what happens.**


	2. Chapter 2

**This chapter is a bit educational. Sorry about that. Well, I'm having a bit of a brain-fart so I can't really think of much to say. So, once again: I do not own Pokemon, this story is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of the fanfic with the follow button, and give it some reviews as well! Enjoy!**

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Shadow's eyes shot open to hear Veeria crying out and whimpering in her sleep. She was tossing and turning, so Shadow tried to shake her awake. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked up at him, taking deep breaths.

"Bad dream?" Shadow inquired. Veeria nodded. "Well… you're okay now." With that, Shadow rolled over and closed his eyes again, only to open them when he felt the small kit's paws nudge him.

"Shadow?" Veeria asked. He sighed, keeping his eyes closed.

"What is it?"

"I'm scared." Shadow opened his eyes and shifted again, turning towards her.

"You can't sleep?" he asked. She shook her head. "Okay. I know something that will make you feel better." He got up and picked up the little Eevee by her scruff, making her yelp in surprise. She kicked around for a second before staying still.

Shadow brought her outside of the den. He lay Veeria on the grass so that she was looking up at the stars. Shadow lay across from her.

"You love the sky, don't you?" Shadow asked quietly. Veeria nodded. She gazed at the stars, instantly forgetting about the events that happened yesterday. That night, the sky was a beautiful dark mix of black, blue, and even purple. The moon was nowhere in sight, blocked out by the brilliance of stars. The stars that shone as giant points of bright white or yellow.

"It's beautiful," Veeria breathed happily. "But… where's the moon?" Shadow's gaze swept across the night, before pointing with a paw.

"There. Hiding behind those clouds," he told her. Veeria blinked. What clouds? She took a closer look, and upon further inspection, realized that the purplish hue that gave the sky depth were clouds. Clouds that were shining.

Veeria sighed in contentment, forgetting that she even had a broken shoulder. "Hey Shadow?" she asked.

"Yeah?"

"Do you like the sky or the ground better?" Shadow blinked.

"I don't know… I can't fly so I think I like the ground more," he answered. Veeria giggled.

"Is that the only reason why?" she asked. Shadow nodded.

"I guess. So how come you like the sky anyway?" Veeria opened her mouth to answer but realized that she couldn't.

"I don't know… I've just always liked it," she began. "It's so big and pretty… I've always liked the sky and wind. Sometimes I feel like I can hear the wind talking… It's probably my imagination though."

"Voices on the wind?" Shadow repeated. 'Could she…?' Shadow shook his head. No. Impossible. Veeria nodded. They were silent for a while before Veeria suddenly burst out into a fit of giggling.

"What's so funny?" Shadow asked.

"You're afraid of heights!" she replied, smiling. Shadow felt his cheeks turn hot with embarrassment.

"I don't get how you can't be afraid of heights," he said, shaking his head. "Like when we were climbing yesterday. What if I fell? I would've died!" Veeria blinked.

"But you didn't fall. I did. And neither of us died," she pointed out. Shadow opened his mouth to argue again, but then closed it.

"Those voices in the wind, what do they say?" he asked, changing the topic. Veeria frowned.

"I don't hear them all the time… And when I do it's really fuzzy and quiet…" she said. "It says something about '…Sky…' and I think I heard 'Guard…' one time." She looked up at the sky, trying to remember if she heard anything else. "Oh! There was once something about 'mitt' I think." Shadow blinked a few times.

'Sky… Guard…ian?!' he thought, beginning to get a creeping feeling. 'Sky Guardian?! That's impossible! There's no way she's…' He looked over at her. 'And she said something about mitt… I wonder what that was…'

Shadow decided to keep his thoughts to himself. "Maybe it is your imagination," he told her. "You little kits are all so creative and whatnot." She made a face when he called her a kit.

"I'm not a little kit!" she protested in a high, squeaky voice. Shadow chuckled.

"Okay. You're a big kit," he said. In fact, that description fit her perfectly. She was very young compared to him, but she wasn't so young that she could be called a kitsune anymore.

"No I'm not!" she complained.

"How old are you?" Shadow asked. Veeria blinked.

"I… I don't know…" she mumbled, her ears drooping. Shadow realized he must have hit a nerve.

"Hmm. Well why don't we find out?" he suggested. Veeria's ears went back up. She seemed interested. "Stand up for me, and stick your tail out behind you." She followed his instructions. Shadow stood up to check her height, fur hue, tail length, and her paws.

"You seem smaller than most Eevee's," he commented.

"I'm not small!" she squeaked indignantly. Shadow chuckled.

"You're only a few paces," he pointed out. Veeria blinked.

"A pace? What's that?" she asked, confused.

"When you're standing, a pace is the distance between your paws," he told her. Veeria bent down to look at her front paws, seeing her back paws not too far away.

"Like that?" she asked, motioning with her snout towards the empty space. Shadow nodded.

"Exactly," he replied. "So a pace is different for every pokemon. And it's only pokemon who walk on four legs who use paces to measure." Veeria nodded, though she seemed confused.

"So… How old am I?" she asked. Shadow chuckled. What a curious kit.

"I don't know yet. There's still a few things I need to see," he said. He moved back to her tail, and to his surprise, found that it was exactly as long as one pace. "Huh." He said.

"What is it?" Veeria asked.

"Well, when a kit is born, their tail is usually only half a pace long," he began. "As they grow, their tail gets longer along with the distance of one pace. And when a kit becomes six decimoons-"

"What's a decimoon?" Veeria interrupted.

"Ten moons."

"What's a moon?"

"Thirty nights." Veeria nodded.

"So what does that mean?" she asked.

"It means you're at least six decimoons of age," he answered. "I would've guessed you to only be four… or even three." Veeria pouted.

"I already told you that I am not little!" she reminded him. Shadow smiled.

"Well you were right," he said.

"Oh yeah, how old are you Shadow?" Veeria asked.

"I'm around twenty-two decimoons. Why do you ask?" Veeria shrugged.

"I just wanted to know," she replied. "So I'm six decimoons?" she asked. Shadow shook his head.

"Probably. But I should still check a few more things to make sure," he told her. He then examined the saturation and hue of Veeria's fur. It was a bit difficult, since she was shiny, but he trusted himself to do it right.

"Okay. Your fur is showing signs of getting lustrous, but not fully yet," he said. Before she could ask a question, he continued. "When your fur is lustrous and shiny, and it seems to get bolder, that means you've come of age and you can reproduce. This happens at ten decimoons." Veeria nodded slowly.

"Then how old am I?" she asked again. Shadow rolled his eyes.

"By my best guess, still six decimoons," he said. "But there's only one more thing I need to know, and then I can tell you for sure." Veeria nodded quickly in excited anticipation.

Shadow went to inspect her paws. "Veeria, can you lift up your paw so I can look at your pad?" he asked. She nodded and did what she was told, revealing a soft, pink, paw pad. "Now slide your claws out as far as you can." Veeria did so.

Her claws were shiny and sharp, in perfect proportion with the size of her paw. Her pad was also a good size, fitting in under her paw like a blanket. Shadow nodded.

"Okay, I have your results," he said. Veeria looked like she wanted to jump around excitedly, but she couldn't because of her bad shoulder.

"How old am I?" she asked over and over again.

"Like we thought, six decimoons," he said. "You're almost seven, even. It's funny, because you act like a kit of four decimoons old." She giggled.

"Well you act like a one-hundred decimoon old pokemon!" she teased. Shadow smiled.

"Whatever. Come on, let's go back to sleep." Veeria nodded and yipped as Shadow picked her up again, bringing her back to her den. He lay her down in her nest. She yawned as soon as she touched the stuff.

"Tired?" Shadow asked. Veeria nodded sleepily and fell asleep immediately, slumping over in a strange position. Shadow chuckled and re-arranged Veeria's limbs for her, tucking her into a curled up ball of fur.

He sighed and settled down in his own makeshift den, and tried to sleep. He found that he couldn't, as his thoughts kept circling back to Veeria. He opened his eyes and studied her.

'Sky… Guard… Mitt…' he thought. 'Sky Guardian must be that first part… what could 'mitt' be?' he wondered. 'But if it's the Sky Guardian… Then Veeria…' he shook his head again.

Shadow dismissed the thought. It was too far-fetched, too impossible to consider. He rolled over and closed his eyes again. This time, sleep came to him.


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm really behind today on both of my stories, sorry about that. Right, so if you don't already know, I have another fanfiction too, if you'd like to check that out her: ** s/10619161/1/One-After-Another. **Also Feral, Veeria is actually ten ****_deci_****moons. One decimoon is equal to ten moons, making Veeria about 5 human years of age. Thought I'd clear up that misunderstanding, so now onto the disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, this story is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of the fanfic with the follow button, and give it some reviews as well! Enjoy!**

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Shadow yawned and blinked the sleep from his eyes as sunlight filtered into the den. He looked over at Veeria and saw that she was breathing softly, still asleep. He smiled and decided that he would bring her a surprise breakfast in bed. So he left the den, to be met by a strong gust of wind.

'It's windy today,' he thought, squinting and blinking into the breeze. Shadow continued nonetheless, dipping his head so that the wind would not be slapping at his face. He crossed the clearing and began picking through bushy undergrowth, looking for the small, juicy, fleshy fruits. Just thinking about all of the berries that could be out there made Shadow's mouth water.

Shadow growled in annoyance as the bush's leaves, whipping in the wind, whacked him across the face multiple times. He ignored the sting of pain and continued to part the leaves. Soon enough, his search became fruitful, rewarding him with a large array of berries growing deep within the brush.

'Hold on... what kind of berries does Veeria like?' he asked himself. Shadow preferred dryer tasting berries, but he had no idea about the shiny little Eevee. 'I'll just take some of every kind,' he decided. Shadow began grabbing greedily at every single berry in sight - chesto, oran, pecha, figy, ipapa, and even durin. After wrapping the jackpot up with some difficulty in some leaves, he began on his way back to the den.

Veeria awoke with a start. She yawned and stretched, before she noticed that Shadow wasn't there. "Shadow?" she called out. There wasn't a response. 'I wonder where big brother is,' she thought. 'Maybe he's just out for a walk?' Then her stomach growled. 'I'm hungry,' Veeria thought. She got up to her paws, wanting to head out of the den to look for food, when Shadow appeared in the entrance, holding a bulging leaf wrap in his jaws.

"Shadow! You're back!" Veeria exclaimed happily. "What's that in your mouth?" Shadow mumbled something incoherent, seeing as how his maw was occupied at the moment. He carefully dropped the leaf wrap on the floor of the den, and a few berries bounced out. Veeria went wide eyed at the sight of the large quantity of fruits, her mouth beginning to water. "You brought food!" Shadow smiled.

"Surprise," he said, pushing the berries towards her. "I didn't know what flavor you liked, so I got them all." Veeria was transfixed by the sight of all the food, so it took her a second to process the fact that Shadow had just said something.

"Huh?" Veeria asked, blinking a few times. "Oh! U-Uhmm... I- I... like..." she stuttered and coughed. "What's a flavor?" she asked quietly, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. Shadow laughed.

"The taste of a certain food," he explained. "In berries, there can be five flavors. Spicy, dry, sweet, bitter, or sour. I like dry the best." Veeria looked up.

"They all sound so yummy..." Veeria said. "I don't know..."

"Then why don't we find out?" Shadow suggested, nosing a figy berry towards her with a mischievous smile. He was already trying hard not to laugh at the thought of the little kit running and panting from the spicy flavor.

Veeria bit experimentally at the berry, and flinched at the stinging taste. After recovering from her initial shock, she took another bite, and then another. Soon she had devoured the entire thing. "Yummy!" she beamed, wearing a huge smile. Shadow watched her eat with his jaw dropped.

"Okay... how about this one?" he asked after a moment, picking out an ipapa for her. If the hot spice of a figy berry wouldn't get to her, surely the staggering sourness of an ipapa fruit would. Just thinking about its taste made Shadow pucker, as if he could taste the sourness.

Veeria sniffed at the large, awkwardly shaped berry before taking a huge bite. Her mouth widened and Shadow smirked, thinking that he had succeeded. He was met with surprise as Veeria's eyes sparkled and she wolfed down as much as she could. "That was good too!"

Shadow shook his head. "Okay, what about a dry flavor?" He then rolled a chesto berry towards her. Veeria stopped it with her paw and bit into it instanty, surprised when the tough skin refused to break. Although she didn't get much of a taste, she loved the dryness of it. She took longer to finish the chesto berry, since it was hard all over, but she loved it nonetheless. "Mmm..." Veeria smiled at Shadow, her belly getting fuller and fuller from all the delicious fruits.

"I'm surprised you like the dry flavor, out of all three of the ones you've tried so far..." Shadow commented. Veeria smiled.

"The berry is dry, but my mouth is wet!" she replied in a high-pitched voice. "What other flavors are there?" she asked excitedly. Shadow thought for a moment, trying to decide between sweet and bitter, before choosing sweet. Since Veeria seemed to love more negatively-based flavors, she must hate sweet things.

"There's this one," Shadow said, picking up pecha berry in his jaws and dropping it at her paws. Veeria poked at the tender fruit, giggling when the skin dipped inwards. She took a slow bite of the soft, fleshy berry, sweet juices spurting out into her mouth. She savored the sugary flavor, smiling and licking her chops.

"Don't tell me you like that one too!" Shadow exclaimed, shocked. Veeria made a face.

"No I didn't like it," she replied. Shadow sighed. "I loved it!" He groaned.

"Okay. There's only one kind of flavor left - bitter. And that's in this berry-" He pushed over a green, spiky berry, that filled Shadow's mouth with bitterness just by looking at it. "Few pokemon can eat a durin berry just like this, because it tastes so bitter." Veeria licked the fruit's hard outside, her taste buds tingling at the taste.

In less than a second, the small berry had disappeared into Veeria's maw. "So good!" she exclaimed in delight. Shadow's eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"So spicy, sweet, dry, sour, and bitter..." he mumbled.

"I love them all!" Veeria decided, jumping around in excitement and happiness. "They all taste so amazing!" Shadow sighed, shook his head, and smiled.

"I can't believe it..." he said. "I didn't think it was even possible for a pokemon to like every flavor." Veeria giggled.

"I can't believe it's possible for a pokemon to not like every flavor!" she shot back, rolling onto her back, huffing in the process. "I'm so full..." Shadow chuckled.

"Well, I'll have my breakfast now then, while you rest," he said, before drawing a chesto berry towards himself. He nimbly bit at the berry, finishing it in a matter of seconds. "Mmm... Well I can understand why you like the dry flavor," he said.

Veeria watched Shadow eat for a while before getting bored. She meandered over to the entrance of the den. "I'm bored," she complained. "Can we go outside?"

"As soon as I'm done eating," Shadow replied, stuffing his face with an oran berry.

"You eat too much," Veeria whined, pawing at the ground impatiently. Shadow rolled his eyes.

"Speak for yourself," he said. "I'm done now, so let's go." He brushed past Veeria and headed outside, to be met yet again by a face full of wind. "I forgot about how windy it was," Shadow muttered, looking to the ground.

"It's not that bad," Veeria said, smiling. "I like it!"

"You like everything," Shadow said, chuckling. "Okay then, so what do you want to do?"

"Chase me!" Veeria squealed, dashing off. She ran around the clearing, her fur whipping in the wind. Shadow leaped after her, pretending to have a hard time keeping up. He laughed as Veeria stumbled a bit, her shoulder causing the running to be a bit awkward. She continued onwards, shouting and yelping in excitement.

Shadow sped up, catching up to her. "I've got you!" he called, as he ran right behind her. She looked back and grinned gleefully before putting on an extra burst of speed, trying to outpace him. She lost her footing again and tripped, landing painfully and skidding across the ground. She cried out as pain seared through her bad shoulder.

"Veeria, are you alright?" Shadow asked worriedly, leaning down. She shook her head and turned, meeting his gaze. Her eyes were wide, and contained the threat to spill tears.

"M-My s-s-shoulder..." she choked out through gritted teeth, her voice trembling.

Shadow quickly checked her over, breathing a sigh of relief when he found that nothing had gone terribly wrong. "You'll be okay," he assured in a soft voice. "The bone didn't move. It'll hurt for a while, then the pain will go away." Veeria sniffed and nodded, trying not to cry.

"O-Okay..." she stuttered. "C-Can we... Can w-we go b-back inside?"

"Not yet. If I tried to bring you inside, the wind would jolt you around and could hurt your shoulder more," Shadow told her. Veeria blinked.

"Oh." was all she could say. She closed her eyes and lay her head to the ground and began to breathe in tandem with the swaying of the grass and trees. She soon forgot about the pain as her body functions snychronised with the wind. Suddenly, the howling wind disappeared, being replaced by a gentle breeze. Veeria opened her eyes at the sudden shift.

"What just happened?" Shadow asked, bewildered. Veeria looked proud for some reason.

"I wanted the wind to go away, so I told it to!" she beamed. "And it listened! It's like magic!" she giggled. Shadow looked at Veeria, then at the sky, then back at Veeria. A thought from the day before began to inch its way back into his mind.

"Veeria. Tell me exactly how you did that," he said. She blinked, noticing the serious tone in his voice.

"Umm... Well... I... I don't know," she answered. Shadow sighed.

"Maybe it was just a coincidence..." he thought out loud. "There's no way she's... It's impossible..." Veeria caught what he said.

"No way I'm what?" she asked, tilting her head to the side. Shadow took in a sharp breath when he realized that she had heard.

"Umm... what do you mean? Did I say something?" he lied, trying to bluff his way out of the conversation. Veeria stared at him for a moment before shaking her head.

"Nevermind..." she replied. "So umm... can we go inside now?" Shadow nodded absentmindedly.

"Yes... Yes we can," he said, taking her by her collar fur. He carried her to the den woven from the tree and lay her down on the soft dirt floor. He at across from her and stared at the ceiling, thinking things over.

Shadow stopped his train of thought, not wanting to consider the possibility anymore. He began looking around the den. The walls were made of individual tree roots, running vertically up and down, sometimes merging and crossing at different spots. The walls curved at the back, offering a rounded out shape. Small gaps in the roots allowed sunlight in, casting small beams of light onto the dirt, illuminating dust particles along the way.

Veeria coughed, not enjoying the awkward silence. "Umm... So what now?" she asked.

"Veeria, I want you to try and change the winds again," he told her, ignoring her question. Veeria blinked.

"Why?" she asked.

"It's important. I'll tell you later," he half-lied. It was true that he would indulge her with the speculations he had and the information behind it after, but if and only if she was successful. Veeria nodded, still a little confused.

"Umm... Uhh wind can you go faster?" she asked quietly, addressing the world. To be perfectly honest, she had no idea what had caused the change in weather before. "Hello? Umm... Nevermind... I guess.." She sighed and shook her head at Shadow.

"No luck?" he asked. Veeria shook her head.

"If I did it right you would hear the wind right now," she said. "So no it didn't work..." Shadow nodded. "So... what were you going to tell me?"

"It's nothing important," Shadow said. Veeria frowned.

"But you promised to tell me," she complained. "I want to know!" Shadow shook his head.

"It's better if you don't know," he said. Veeria pouted.

"Veeria wants to know!" she shouted unhappily.

_"Perhaps it is better if you tell her,"_ ancient Veeria piped in.

_"_Yeah!" Veeria squeaked. "She agrees with me!"

"No!" Shadow answered, a little more forcefully than he intended to. Veeria flinched, shrinking from him. "The information is dangerous! You should be happy that you don't know!" Veeria's eyes widened and she began shaking.

"Y-You're s-scaring me..." she said quietly, her voice quivering. A few small tears found their way to Veeria's eyes. Shadow sighed.

"I'm sorry Veeria... But I really can't tell you," he said. "I can only tell you if and only if you manage to change the winds again." Veeria nodded slowly.

"Okay... I get it..." she said, still a little shaken from Shadow's outburst earlier. "I don't really want to know anymore..."

"I'm really sorry for scaring you," Shadow apologized.

"It's okay," Veeria replied. Shadow was unconvinced that it was 'okay.'

"You need to stay inside until that shoulder heals," Shadow said, his voice cutting through the heavily silent air. "I'm going to take a nap. I suggest that you do the same." Veeria nodded as Shadow lay down, his flank soon rising and falling steadily. Still she made no attempt to sleep, and instead decided to try and command the sky. She stole a glance at Shadow before sneaking out of the den slowly, her shoulder hindering her progress.

'Go. Go faster,' she urged. No change. 'Please. Go faster.' Still nothing. She sighed, her heartbeat slowing down to match her disappointment. With the exhale of breath, Veeria swore she could feel the faintest of gales stir up, before it disappeared again.

'Come on,' she whined inwardly. No wind stirred. She sighed and turned around, heading back inside the den. Veeria looked over at Shadow and made a face. She desperately wished to learn of all the secrets hidden in that Umbreon's mind, but... maybe he was right. Maybe it was better if she didn't know. She shook her head and slumped down, not wanting to think about it anymore.

Veeria closed her eyes as her heartbeat slowed and her breathing steadied. All thought activity in her mind stopped as she slowly began to drift off. Right before she was enveloped by the blanket of sleep, however, she thought she heard the whipping of a strong wind outside the den.

* * *

**Sorry that this chapter was so late, I've been busy lately. And I'll only get busier... Looks like my posting schedule is going to undergo a few tweaks...**


	4. Chapter 4

**New posting schedule: I'll upload a new chapter whenever I finish writing one. So by now, some of you may have figured out the central figure behind all this talk of "sky," but if not, the secret shall be revealed soon enough. Also, about the cover picture, I probably won't get finished with that for a while... So you'll have to wait on that... other than those few things, there's not much to talk about, so onto the disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, this fanfic is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Enjoy!**

Veeria sighed, opening her eyes for the fiftieth time that day. Since she woke up a few hours ago, she had been trying to manipulate the wind pattern, without any luck. Every passing moment deepened her curiosity even more: she badly wanted to know what Shadow was talking about before. Veeria yawned, starting to get bored of all her failed attempts.

She tried again anyway, since she had nothing better to do. 'Go faster...' she urged halfheartedly. She sighed when nothing happened, as usual. She shook her head and turned to go back inside. 'This is going nowhere,' she thought in disappointment. 'Forget it...'

Veeria yawned again, completely losing interest. She slumped down on the floor, and being the young pokekit she was, became bored immediately. She didn't want to sleep, she wasn't hungry, and Shadow was still snoring lightly off to the side. Without anything to do, her body naturally became lazy; her heartbeat slowed, her mind entered a sluggish state, while her breathing practically matched that of a sleeping pokemon.

Wind.

It was nowhere. The air lay completely, unnaturally still. Veeria's ears perked up at the sudden shift, and her eyes widened, her heartbeat quickening. The movement in the air picked up, slowly building speed. 'Yes! I did it!' she thought happily. Then the air shifted back to the same gentle breeze as before. 'Or not...' Veeria frowned.

'How did I do that?' Veeria paced around, trying to find out an answer to the question of the century. She didn't know. It had just happened. She was just sitting there, bored, and then... 'Hold on!' she stopped moving. That was the answer. She hadn't been doing anything.

Veeria quickly dropped down and cleared her mind. Her heartbeat was racing at the possibility of her theory, but she forced it to slow by breathing quietly. She closed her eyes, trying to connect with the wind.

She felt it. Wind brisked around busily, pushing past anything in its way. Still air meandered throughout the world, gracefully weaving around anything that pushed through it. Veeria didn't simply see the sky, she had felt its essence and tethered herself to it. She willed for faster wind, and she got it. She willed for still air, and she earned that as well.

Veeria's eyes shot open and she grinned in excitement. She stumbled over to Shadow and began shaking him forcefully, trying to wake the Umbreon.

"Go away..." Shadow mumbled tiredly. He rolled over, keeping his eyes closed. Veeria held in a giggle and shook him some more, to which the Umbreon groaned and opened his eyes. "What is it Veeria?" he asked in an annoyed tone.

"Shadow! I did it! You have to tell me now!" she cheered, jumping around him. Shadow blinked, confused. Then he connected the dots and his eyes widened.

"Veeria. Please tell me you didn't manage to do that," he said in a serious manner. Veeria stopped her prancing and tilted her head.

"I... I did..." she replied, starting to get a little worried. Shadow groaned.

"Life just got a whole lot more complicated for you, Veeria," he said. Veeria frowned.

"I'm confused..." she said.

"Okay. Do you know who Shaymin are?" Shadow asked. Veeria shook her head. "Shaymin are legendary pokemon. Some of them are sky guardians." Veeria nodded slowly.

"So... what does that mean for me?" she asked.

"Some Shaymin prefer the land, and others like the sky," Shadow continued. "The Shaymin of the sky have a certain job, which is to keep the sky under control. They also have the ability to manipulate wind, like you do." Veeria blinked. "Those powers are known as Aera. Very few Shaymin are born with them, so few in fact, that only three Sky Shaymin exist right now."

"So how come I can change the wind, if I'm not a Shaymin?" Veeria asked. Shadow shook his head.

"I don't know. That's why I thought it was impossible that you possesed Aera," Shadow replied. "But... You do. And that means you need to find Sky Summit. That's a mountain inhabited by the three sky guardians." Veeria's eyes widened.

"Why? Can't I just stay here? It's not like anything bad's going to happen to me," she protested. Shadow grimaced. "...Right? Nothing bad is going to happen?" her voice was rising now.

"I wish," Shadow replied. "But if you don't go, something bad is going to happen."

"What?" Veeria asked, her eyes wide.

"Heatran. Another legendary pokemon," he said. Then he sighed. "Listen closely Veeria. Big brother is going to tell you another ancient tale." Veeria nodded and made herself comfortable, though her heart was pounding loudly.

"A long long time ago... When the very first Sky Shaymin came into existence, Heatran was... awake, prowling around the land. This was so long ago, that only legendary pokemon roamed the world," Shadow began. "There were no oceans. Hetran hated water, and he wanted as much land as possible. So he went around creating it all, attacking any pokemon that disagreed with his actions. After all the oceans had been covered, however, he still wanted more. He wanted the sky to be full of land." Veeria couldn't help but laugh.

"He wanted the _sky... _to be full of _land_?" she asked, grinning. Shadow glared at her.

"This is no laughing matter. Yes, it sounds absurd, but remember that Heatran is a mostly underground dwelling pokemon," he said. "Anyway, some other pokemon actually agreed with Heatran, namely Groudon, Deoxys, Darkrai, and a few others. The conflict grew over time, and eventually erupted into war. The fighting pokemon went down one by one, until Heatran and a tiny little Sky Shaymin were left. Heatran was overconfident; he thought he could beat the little legendary easily. However, his ties to the land eventually became his downfall, for he could not hit the Shaymin. She could simply fly out of range from every single one of his attacks. She could also engage him from a distance, and though the one-sided battle lasted a long time, Shaymin was eventually victorious." Veeria frowned.

"That part was boring," she complained. Shadow rolled his eyes.

"Well I wasn't there, so I can't describe it," he replied. "All I know is that Shaymin won."

"Okay... So Shaymin won... And everyone lived happily ever after. So what about me?" she asked impatiently.

"After that whole... thing, Arceus created the magma stone in order to keep Heatran content. The magma stone now symbolizes him, and the stone itself keeps the world's gravity in order. Heatran went into a bit of an eternal slumber, only to awake when the magma stone is moved." Shadow said. "The thing is... someone sort of stole it recently... and Heatran thinks that the Shaymin did it."

"Why?" Veeria asked. Shadow shrugged.

"Dunno. But Hetran's awake now, and he's very mad," he continued. "To be perfectly honest, maybe the Shaymin did steal the magma stone. After all, most pokemon hate Heatran. Especially Shaymin."

"I still don't get what this has to do with me," Veeria interrupted.

"I'm getting to that," Shadow replied. "Aera is a very powerful ability, so powerful in fact that legendary pokemon are able to sense it, no matter how far away the source is. However, Sky Summit, the place where the Sky Guardians live, masks that 'scent'." Veeria nodded.

"So... can you get to it faster?" She asked, starting to get bored.

"Heatran is coming after you," Shadow said. Veeria's boredom vanished instantly.

"What?" she squeaked, starting to get afraid.

"Heatran is seeking you out," he repeated. "Well... Not Heatran himself... more like the pokemon willing to do his dirty work." Veeria was shaking a little at this point.

"S-Shadow... I-I'm scared..." she said quietly. Shadow looked at her pitifully. Maybe Heatran wouldn't be able to tell that this tiny, shaking ball of fur was the source of Aera. He dismissed the possibility instantly. The musk of Aera was too concentrated to mistake.

"Veeria. Listen to me. You need to go to Sky Summit. I don't know how or why you possess Aera, and I don't know where Sky Summit is or how to find it. All I know is that if you don't get there, you'll die." Her eyes widened.

"How am I supposed to go fast enough? How do I even find it?" she asked, her voice rising. "It's useless! I'm going to die!" Shadow shook his head.

"Maybe, maybe not. You need to run and see if fate is kind to you," he told her.

"Fate?" she repeated, starting to get hysterical. "My fate is to die! Fate doesn't care about me!"

"Then let destiny decide," he replied. Veeria gulped.

"Are you... are you going to come with me?" she asked. Shadow shook his head.

"I wish I could... But I can't. There are things I have to do," he said. Veeria's ears drooped.

"But... How will I know where to go or what to do?" she asked.

"Aera will guide and protect you," Shadow assured.

"Aera isn't enough!" she protested. "I barely know how to use it!"

_"You have quite the predicament there, don't you, little one?"_ the voice resounded, clear in both of their heads.

"Y-Yes... Veeria what do I do?" Veeria asked.

_"You need a Gracidea," _the voice said. _"It will grant you full access to the latent power inside of you - All you need to do is learn to control it, and strengthen it."_

"What's a Gracidea? And how do I get it?" Veeria asked.

_"A legendary flower. They're directly connected to Sky Shaymin. If you are able to obtain one, you may just have a chance of making it to Sky Summit."_

Veeria began to get hopeful. "Do you... Maybe know where Sky Summit is?" she asked.

_"Unfortunately, no. But... I do know where you can get a Gracidea."_

"Where?" Veeria asked, her heart beating faster. "Please tell me!"

_"Veeria, before I tell you, you must promise me that you will make it to Sky Summit." _Veeria's eyes widened.

"I..." she began. "But... I don't even know where it is..."

_"Do you promise?"_

"Y-Yes," she promised shakily. "I promise. I have to get there. For myself, and for the Sky Guardians. Even though I wasn't meant to have this power, I need to protect it." Shadow blinked at the kit's speech. 'Impressive,' he thought.

_"Good. Then I shall trust you... with this," _The earth began shaking a little. Veeria and Shadow saw, heard, and felt the tree begin to shift. The wall that made up the back of the den slid into the ground, revealing a small, bright, beautiful pink flower, growing on a vine.

The vine wrapped snugly around a tree root, creating an intricate pattern of green and brown. Leaves sprouted symmetrically around the vine, serving no purpose other than aesthetics. A six-pointed flower resided at the tip of the green growth. Two deep green leaves sprang from the pink edges, while small yellow dots of pollen rested on the whiter middle portion.

"Is that...?" Veeria breathed.

_"Yes. It is a Gracidea. Take it."_

Veeria stepped up to the delicate flower. She gingerly removed it from its stem. Immediately, she felt as if a door that had been inside of her just opened, and a soft but strong power rushed out.

"You need to hide that somehow... You can't let any pokemon see it," Shadow said. Veeria thought for a moment before tucking the plant into her neck fur, covering it with the soft silvery strands. Shadow nodded. "Good." They stood for a moment, staring at each other.

"So... I have to go now?" Veeria asked, feeling a pang in her heart. Shadow nodded.

"Yes," he said. If he was feeling anything, he was good at hiding it. To Veeria, it seemed like he didn't even care that she was leaving, probably for good.

"Bye..." she said quietly, turning around to leave. Then she stopped. "Wait... I'm only six decimoons old! How am I supposed to survive out there?!"

"The same way you've survived so far," Shadow replied. "By finding a friend. By gathering berries. By being yourself. Humans and even other pokemon may be hostile... But you have Aera to protect you." Veeria nodded slowly, still not wanting to leave. But the fact that she really didn't have a choice forced her to take a few steps out of the den.

The earth shook. Holes appeared in the ground, and pokemon - Mostly Slugma, Macargo, and Dugtrio flooded from them, and surrounded Veeria. They immediately began attacking Veeria, shooting blasts of fire at her. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the attack to hit. It never did. She opened her eyes to see a barrier of some sort protecting her.

"Veeria! You need to run! Now!" Shadow yelled, jumping in front of her. "I'll fight them. Don't worry about me. Just run and don't look back." Veeria's eyes widened.

"B-But..."

"Do it!" Shadow snarled, a crazed look in his eyes. Veeria nodded and dashed off, tears in her eyes. She pushed through the endless undergrowth, not stopping for a moment. She ran as fast as she could, her speed enhanced by the Gracidea. She ran, not knowing where she was going, not knowing what to do, and not knowing why those pokemon had attacked her. All she knew was that she would never see Shadow again.

* * *

**Ehh... Sorry, this chapter is really bad in my opinion. I feel a little off today...**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm too lazy to do the cover picture right now. That'll happen eventually, but probably not anytime soon. Other than that, all I have to say is that I do not own Pokemon, this story is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of the fanfic with the follow button, and give it some reviews as well! Enjoy!**

Veeria ran. She ran for Arceus knows how long. Even when she passed the boundary of the forest, she kept running. The ground turned harder and felt rough under her paws, due to her living on softer terrain her entire life. She didn't stop once to consider where she was going, or to think about anything else.

Eventually, she had to stop. Veeria skidded to a halt and collapsed on the spot, sides heaving in an attempt to get air back into her body. She looked around. She had no idea where she was. There were trees, but it wasn't a forest. She was laying at the base of a hill, staring up the grass covered slope. She lay under the shade of a tree, panting and breathing heavily.

Veeria soon sat up. She blinked a few times and shook her head, dizzy from the sudden movement. Her breathing got quieter and less needy as she surveyed her surroundings.

Hills. Grass covered slopes that were dotted with trees and provided a clear view to the open sky. The sky was blue and bright, white puffs of cloud dotting the expanse. Wind blew softly through the long grass, creating a wave effect. Veeria got up to her paws and began climbing the hill that she had rested at, glancing around her the entire time. There were a few Pidgey and Spearow, as well as some other common pokemon, but not any dangerous ones.

Veeria let her guard down and began enjoying the scenery. The land was so green; even greener than her home in the forest. She felt like all she wanted to do was run, but she had already done enough of that for one day. At the sounds of chirping, she looked up and saw a few more bird pokemon race across the sky.

Veeria smiled, wishing that she could join them. She tried imagining what flying would be like - Suspended in an endless blue sky, wind rushing past her, no limitations to what she could do. She soon got lost in her daydream as she continued to traverse the green hills.

A heavy weight. There was something heavy on Veeria, pinning her to the ground. She squirmed, trying to get out from under it, but it didn't budge. She managed to turn her head and saw a strangely colored Eevee with a hostile look in his eyes.

"W-Who are you?" she asked fearfully.

"The question is, who are you?" he shot back venomously. He drew out his claws and placed them above her throat. "You better tell me now, before I do something." Veeria's eyes widened.

"No!" she shouted, shutting them. A strong gust of wind blew past, then the air was silent. The Eevee on top of her looked around in confusion. "Get off of me!" Air exploded outwards from Veeria, throwing him off. He landed on the ground, the breath driven from his lungs.

When the weight vanished, Veeria opened her eyes. She took a good look at the Eevee. He seemed to be about the same age as her. But the strangest thing was his fur. The tip of his tail was snow-white, to match the color of his collar fur, which seemed like a cloud floating around his neck.. The rest of his body, which should usually be brown, was instead a stunning orange-yellow color, with a hint of the normal brown, that reminded Veeria of a sunset.

"W-Who are you?" Veeria asked, trying to sound forceful. However, the question came out quietly, with a shy tone.

"Vieille," the Eevee responded firmly. Het got up and shook himself, clearing the dirt from his fur. "Uhm... Sorry about attacking you..." he added sheepishly. "I was pretending to be tough so you wouldn't want to hurt me."

_Vieille._ Veeria liked that name. Her cheeks tinted pink with shyness as she replied, "I-It's... okay..." she mumbled. Vieille blinked.

"Aren't you going to tell me your name?" he asked. Veeria blushed a bit more and shook her head, staying silent. "You're shy." he stated, tilting his head. Veeria looked back into his sky-blue eyes, feeling like they were staring into her soul, gathering every bit of information about her. Veeria nodded.

"Well... I guess I can't force you to tell me your name," Vieille sighed, laying down to look up at the sky. Veeria noticed this and tilted her head. She stayed silent to see what Vieille would do or say.

Seconds passed. Then minutes. Maybe even hours. Veeria wasn't sure. Vieille just lay there, staring up at the blueness as clouds floated lazily by. Veeria soon joined him in his cloud watching, though she didn't make any move to get closer to him. She was still wary of the strange Eevee.

"M-My name's V-Veeria..." Veeria shyly blurted out. Vieille looked over at her with a surprised look on his face.

"Veeria..." he repeated. "That's a pretty name. A pretty name for a pretty Eevee." Veeria blushed furiously and looked away. Vieille laughed. "You really are shy... I've known a few shy pokemon in my life, but not anyone as shy as you." Veeria felt her cheeks turn even hotter.

"Y-Your... Your f-f-fur..." she mumbled, changing the topic. Vieille glanced down at his body and seemed to get the picture.

"I don't know either," he replied with a shrug. "I was just born like this. Just like you were born shiny." Veeria nodded absentmindedly. An awkward silence wedged its way between them, and began to lengthen.

"So... What are you doing out here?" Vieille asked, shattering the quiet.

"I-I..." Veeria began. "C-Can't say..." Vieille blinked but just nodded, not asking her any more. It was almost like he respected her shyness and was willing to give her space if she wanted it.

"I'm just travelling the world," Vieille said. "My parents did it too... They loved it. They loved finding new places, exploring the unexplored, and searching for hidden lands and treasures. And so do I." Veeria nodded, wondering why he was opening up to her. "In fact... I heard about this place called Sky Summit a while ago... I've been searching for it, but so far I've had no luck." He sighed.

"I'm going to Sky Summit," Veeria blurted before she even had time to think. Vieille shot up and looked at her with wide eyes, full of excitement.

"Really? Where is it? Can I come with you?" he asked in rapid succession. Veeria's cheeks turned red again. There goes his respect for her shyness...

"I... D-Don't know yet..." she stammered. Vieille's ears drooped in disappointment and he nodded.

"Well... Can I still come with you?" he asked. Veeria's cheeks turned redder.

"W-Why?" she asked.

"You seem nice," Vieille replied. "I want to be your friend. You're also going to the same place I am, so why not travel together?" Veeria nodded, though she was still skeptical.

"I-I don't know..." she mumbled shyly.

"You're also pretty cute... That's another reason," Vieille complimented. Veeria's cheeks flushed again. Maybe she should let him... He seemed nice enough, and maybe he could use his explorer-cartographer-magic to help her locate Sky Summit. And to be perfectly honest, she thought he was fairly cute too...

"O-Okay..." Veeria decided. Vieille jumped up and gave a shout of excitement.

"Yes! Then let's go now!" he exclaimed, beginning to dash off. In his haste, however, he failed to realize that his tail was still curled around his body, which caused him to trip and faceplant into the ground. Veeria smiled a little.

"N-Not yet... I still have to tell you why I want to go," Veeria said. Right after she said it, however, she wished she didn't. 'Should I really tell him?' she asked herself. 'Would he even believe me?'

"Huh? I thought you didn't want to tell me," Vieille replied, brushing himself off as he sat up.

"Do you know who Shaymin are?" Veeria asked. Vieille nodded vigorously.

"Of course! Shaymin are awesome! There are the land Shaymin and the sky Shaymin and..." he launched into a full-out explanation, talking rapidly. "...Power called Aera!" he finished. Veeria nodded.

"Y-Yes... I-I have to go to Sky Summit because..." she gulped. "B-Because... I... can control Aera." Silence. Vieille stared at Veeria, his expression unreadable. Veeria winced, thinking that he was mad at her or something. She closed her eyes and waited for him to explode in anger.

"That... Is..." he began quietly. Veeria tensed. "So cool!" She opened her eyes and looked at him incredulously. "You can really control it? You're really a Sky Guardian? I thought only Shaymin could be Sky Guardians!" Veeria nodded.

"Y-Yes... I don't know why I am either..." she replied. Vieille smiled.

"There's one more reason why I want to go to Sky Summit," he told her. "I know this might sound stupid... but... I want to be a flying type." Veeria blinked.

"Really?" she asked. Vieille nodded.

"I've always liked flying type pokemon. They're so awesome! I really want to evolve into a flying type pokemon, so I was hoping that maybe Sky Summit would have some sort of secret evolution stone or something." Veeria stayed silent.

"Can I see it?" Vieille suddenly asked. Veeria blinked.

"W-What?" she asked. Vieille rolled his eyes.

"Duh, the Gracidea. There's no way you're a Sky Guardian and don't have one," Vieille replied. Veeria blinked before parting her neck fur with a paw, revealing the light pink flower. Vieille's eyes sparkled at the sight of it. "Can I... come closer and see it?" Veeria nodded.

Vieille curiously padded up to Veeria and inspected the legendary plant. Veeria blushed due to the fact that they were so close to each other. Vieille greedily looked the flower over over and over again, as if he were trying to memorize it. When he finally drew away, he sat on the ground and unstrapped a pouch from his neck. Veeria blinked. She hadn't even noticed the leather thing.

What he pulled out of the pouch surprised her.

A book.

A small, worn out, notebook with a map of the region on the front. Vieille opened it up, flipping through pages. Veeria couldn't see what the book contained, since Vieille's back was turned to her. So she crept up behind him and looked over his shoulder. What she saw made her gasp.

Drawings. Beautiful, intricate drawings filled the journal to the brim. Drawings of treasures, rare items, maps, and even famous Pokemon were contained within the brittle pages. 'He drew all that?' she thought in wonder. The sketches were so stunning that they almost seemed delicate, as if a single touch would ruin them forever. Vieille, still not noticing Veeria, managed to find an empty spot.

He then pulled one more thing out of his pouch. It was a small glass container, filled to the cork with black liquid. Vieille unsheathed his claws and pried the cork out. He proceeded to dip a claw in the liquid, which coated the silver weapon of attack.

Veeria watched, amazed, as Vieille began to trace lines and shapes on the empty page, beginning his work. She couldn't quite make out what he was drawing at the moment, seeing as how he had just begun. Soon though, the sketch began to take its shape and Veeria gasped when she realized what it was.

A Gracidea. He was drawing a Gracidea. It looked so life-like, so realistic - Like she could reach into the book and take it out. Vieille continued his work happily, as if creating the most beautiful of drawings was the easiest thing in the world. It probably was, for an explorer. Although he seemed to be only six or seven decimoons, he sure had a much older soul.

"Finished!" Vieille exclaimed happily. He smiled as he held the book up with his paws, looking at his work.

"It's... amazing..." Veeria breathed, awestruck. "You're an amazing artist..."

"Aww geez, really?" he asked, embarrassed. "You should see my parents' work. It's way better than mine."

"I doubt it," Veeria replied. "That is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, and probably ever will see." Vieille smiled.

"Well, are you ready to get going?" he asked, slapping the book shut. Veeria smiled back and nodded as he packed up his things.

"Yes." Veeria started up a hill.

"Hey, Veeria?" Vieille asked. Veeria looked back at him.

"Yeah?"

"Friends?" Veeria grinned and nodded.

"Friends."

* * *

**Vieille huh? I sort of came up with his name on the fly. What do you think? I personally think it sounds French, but that's probably just me being weird. Anyway, I personally like this chapter more than the last one, but then again, that could also be me being weird. On a final note, looks like I've got two OC's now, huh?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Error 4.04: Filler not found.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, this story is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of the fanfic with the follow button, and give it some reviews as well! Enjoy!**

"Vieille? What are you drawing now?" Veeria asked in-between bites of an oran berry.

"Huh?" The discolored Eevee looked up from his book. The cover was facing Veeria, making her unable to see. "Oh, it's nothing..." Veeria blinked but just shrugged and went back to eating.

"You're sure you're not hungry?" she asked, finishing her oran and moving onto a sitrus. Vieille nodded.

"I'm fine," he replied, going back to his book. Veeria inwardly sighed. Why couldn't he just show her what he was doing? She sat up a little higher, trying to glimpse past the top of his journal. Even so, she couldn't even see the paper yet, let alone what he could be doing on it.

"I don't get it," Veeria frowned. "You already drew the Gracidea, so what else is there to sketch? It's not like there's anything else special around here." Vieille smiled.

"But there is, Veeria," he said. "Maybe someday, I'll show you. Then you'll get what I mean." Veeria pouted.

"I hate confusing things..." she muttered before finishing off her sitrus berry. She sighed, her hunger satiated, and lay on her back to stare at the sky. She noticed Vieille scoot closer out of the corner of her eye, but she ignored him. She smiled as she watched the clouds sail by, looking for different shapes amongst the white puffs.

'There's a pokeball,' she thought, watching the circular cloud. 'Oh! There's a flower! And it looks just like a Gracidea!' Then Veeria tilted her head to the left, and caught sight of a very strangely shaped cloud.

'Wait... That looks like...' she thought, frowning. As the cloud floated past, it began to take a clearer shape. 'That looks like... Vieille! Drawing in his notebook!' She burst out in a fit of quiet giggles, amused by the strange cloud.

Her attention was drawn away from the sky at the sound of a thump, also known to her as the 'Vieille's done with drawing for now' signal.

"Ready to go?" Vieille asked, shoving the small book into his leather pouch. Veeria got up to her paws and nodded.

"Yeah. But what were you drawing, anyway?" she asked, tilting her head. Vieille strapped the pouch to his neck once again and fell into step at her side.

"It's a secret," he said with a smile. "But you might find out one day."

"Come on..." Veeria whined. "Can't that day be today?" Vieille chuckled.

"You're really cute when you're like that," he complimented, making her cheeks flush red. "No. It can't be today."

"Why not?" Veeria persisted, her curiosity starting to ache.

"Because... I'm not ready yet," Vieille responded, suddenly getting a faraway look. Veeria blinked and nodded slowly.

"...Fine," she replied. "But when you are ready, you better tell me." Vieille snapped back to reality.

"Okay," he said, before brushing past her and taking the lead. Veeria quickly caught up and began walking at his side, taking in the scenery as they went.

The terrain slowly began to roughen and incline. Lush green grass turned to tougher stalks, dirt, and rocks. Trees turned into steep inclines of stone. Hills turned into mountains. Veeria's paws and legs soon began to ache from the constant pace at which her and Vieille were walking, as well as from the rough ground.

"Do you even know where were going?" Veeria asked, the thought suddenly coming out of her mouth. Vieille shrugged.

"No clue," he responded. "But Sky Summit, judging from the name, has to be a mountain, right? So we need to search in mountainous areas." Veeria nodded slowly, understanding the logic.

"But there's lots of mountains in this region," she pointed out. "If we search them one by one, Heatran will probably get to me by then." Vieille stopped.

"...Heatran?" he asked, his voice getting much quieter. Veeria winced. She forgot that she hadn't told him yet.

"Uhm... Well... you see... Heatran... sort of... wants me dead," she mumbled. "Because I'm... sort of a... Sky Guardian..." Vieille groaned.

"Well, we're screwed," he said. Veeria's eyes widened. "Unless Aera includes the ability to teleport as well as not-dying, then we'll both be dead, real soon." Veeria blinked.

"Well... Aera is more of a flying type thing, so I don't think I can use it to teleport," she said. "But... flying maybe." Vieille chuckled, making Veeria's face turn hot. "What's so funny?"

"Well, just think about it. A flying Eevee? How would that even work?" he asked, making Veeria's face turn even hotter. Now she really hoped she could actually fly, just to prove Vieille wrong.

"Okay... Well let me try it," she replied. After closing her eyes and drawing power from inside her body, she tried to imagine herself off the ground. She still felt the dirt under her paws, but it felt smooth. She must've been standing on a rock or something.

"What?!" Vieille exclaimed in a shocked manner. Veeria's concentration broke and she opened her eyes to glare at him.

"Wh-" she began, before noticing that she was a few feet off the ground. Her eyes widened and she yelped in surprise, causing her to float backwards a bit.

"H-How... how are you doing that?" Vieille sputtered.

"I have no idea," Veeria answered. She tried moving forward, but being unused to floating, she ended up spinning in midair and ending up upside down, her head facing the earth. Vieille started laughing and Veeria felt her cheeks turn red again.

"It's not funny! It's not my fault I don't know how to fly!" she exclaimed. Vieille was still laughing his head off, sitting on the ground. Veeria turned herself rightside up again. She began to move forward, moving her paws in the air as if she were walking.

"It's just like running!" she exclaimed, picking up speed. Soon enough her strides got longer and more spaced out, and she flew across the ground, circling around the vicinity. She eventually stopped in front of Vieille when she decided she had had enough fun.

"That looked fun," Vieille said with a look of envy. Veeria giggled.

"It was... weird," she replied. "But yeah, it was fun. Too bad you couldn't join me," she teased. Vieille rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," he said, before looking up at the sky. "We need to start moving again. You managed to burn an entire hour." Veeria directed her attention to the sinking sun. She smiled and turned back to Vieille.

"Looks like someone's jealous!" she sang, poking and nudging him with her paw.

"Am not," Vieille said.

"Are too."

"Am no- Agh, fine. Maybe a little." Veeria smiled.

"Told you so. Now let's go find somewhere to sleep. It's going to be dark soon," she suggested. Vieille nodded.

Veeria decided to do, literally, a fly-by search from the air. Vieille was forced to search on foot, though he did so in a more careful manner than his companion. Veeria searched a larger area in a quicker manner, while Vieille examined a smaller area carefully. Soon he discovered a cave that went far enough back for both him and Veeria. He sat there and watched the tiny speck that was the flying Eevee, waiting for her to come back.

She eventually did, landing carelessly. "Vieille! I found the most amazing place!" Vieille blinked.

"Really?" he asked. "What was it like?"

"There was this really steep mountain, with a huge cave at the top!" she exclaimed, her eyes sparkling. "There were crystals in it, and all of them were different colors!"

"Huh," Vieille replied. "Well, it sounds like only flying type pokemon can get over there." Veeria blinked before muttering something under her breath.

"Oh right..." she mumbled. Vieille smiled.

"Well... On the bright side, I found somewhere too. It doesn't have crystals, though." He stepped aside to reveal the small cave. Veeria stepped inside, sniffing at the stone walls and floor.

"Looks good," she said after about one second of examination. Vieille chuckled.

"You need to be more thorough than that," he told her. Veeria shrugged and began to make her way to a spot and settle down. "I wouldn't step on that rock if I were you," Vieille said.

Veeria looked at him, confused, before a hard and sharp object poked into her paw. She yelped in surprise, jumping back. She was now backing up quickly, heading straight for the stone wall.

"There's a wall behind you," Vieille warned. Too late: Veeria had already scraped against the rough stone. She frowned and decided to just settle down where she was, ignoring the stinging pain. Vieille smiled and made his way over to her, settling down a few feet away.

"Good night Veeria," he said.

"Good night," Veeria replied. Almost immediately, her breathing became steady and she had fallen asleep. Vieille stayed awake, watching Veeria most of the time.

"Veeria," he whispered. "What a pretty name..." he found that ever since he had met her, her name seemed to keep finding its way into his mind. It would repeat itself over and over, and Vieille would hang onto every syllable, every letter. He smiled and rolled over, trying to get some sleep.

Just as he was about to drift off, the sound of thunder caused his eyes to shoot open in fear. His heart began pounding in his chest as rain started pounding against their cave.

"V-Veeria!" he hissed, trying to shake her awake.

"What...?" she mumbled, annoyed at whatever was bothering her. She yawned and opened her eyes, to see a shaking Vieille, his eyes wide. "What is it?" she asked, starting to get worried. Another clap of thunder. Vieille flinched.

"I... I-I'm a-afraid of t-thunder..." he admitted. Veeria nodded.

"Well... What if you sleep with me?" she asked, not knowing what else to say. Vieille hesitated.

"Are you sure?" he asked. "You'd be okay with that?" Veeria smiled and nodded.

"Yes, go ahead," she offered. "We're friends, after all." Vieille smiled and slowly moved himself over to her. He felt calmed at the touch of her fur.

"Thanks..." Vieille mumbled, before yawning. He closed his eyes, still pressed up against Veeria's side. Veeria smiled.

'He's cute when he's sleeping,' she thought. 'But then again, who isn't?' She inwardly chuckled and then rested her head on her paws, trying to get some more rest as well. They both fell asleep at the same time, pressed up against each other in a cave, waiting out the storm.

* * *

**Vieille and Veeria, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G. No just kidding. Their words may sound a bit flirty, but I assure you that they're all out of friendship rather than something else.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Vieille and Veeria, huh? How about this: If you want to see them get together, I've got a poll on my profile. It's called "Veeria X Vieille: Yea or Nay?" The poll will close in, let's see... Five days. Note that I might decide to ignore the poll, meaning if the overall result is yes, then that does not guarantee that they will form a relationship.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, this fanfic is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of the story with the follow button and give it some reviews as well! Enjoy!**

Vieille arose quietly, to find Veeria standing at the entrance to their improvised den. She seemed to be looking outside, as if she were watching for something. Vieille decided to sneak up on her, so he got up behind her, careful not to alert her of his presence. Veeria, however, had already noticed.

"Go-" Vieille began, before he was hushed by a mouth full of tail fur. She turned around, and from the look on her face, he could tell something was up. So he blinked and tilted his head quizzically, seeing as how his mouth was occupied.

"Look," Veeria whispered, motioning to the outside with her head. She backed off the small entrance so that Vieille could peek through. He stalked up to the crack and scanned the outside, soon catching sight of a relatively large crowd of pokemon. He easily picked out the largest ones which he immediately assumed to be the leader.

"I could've sworn it was coming from here," the pokemon growled. Vieille could tell that it was a Lucario, from the shape of its body. However, it's fur was a whole different story. The legs, paws, and face were the usual black. Were a normal Lucario should have blue fur, this one had a deep, glowing red. The chest fur, which would normally be yellow, was instead a solid gray, like stone.

"Maybe you made a mistake," a Macargo suggested stupidly. The Lucario glared daggers at the little pokemon, and the group parted to let their leader do his business.

"I. Do. Not. Make. Mistakes," the pokemon sneered, taking another step towards the pokemon each time he emphasized a word.

"U-Uh... Yeah boss, I meant-"

"You meant nothing," the Lucario shouted, sending the Macargo flying off the mountain with a powerful punch. As his fist made contact with the pokemon's rock body, a loud cracking sound assaulted Vieille's eardrums.

The Lucario turned back around. "Does anyone else have something to say?" he asked with a crooked smile. All his minions looked away, either to the ground, or to the sky, trying not to make eye contact. "Good. That's what I thought."

'Who is this pokemon?' was the first thing that Vieille could think. He continued to watch and listen, hoping that his question would be answered.

"Now look. Your petty Heatran is apparently too lazy to get rid of the Sky Guardian by himself, so he gave the job to me," the Lucario, began, pacing around.

A yawn erupted from somewhere within the crowd. The Lucario stopped walking.

"Reveal yourself. Now." he commanded. The pokemon parted once again to reveal a Slugma, it's eyes wide. The Lucario slowly walked up to it. "Tell me, why did you interrupt me?"

"It's just we already know about this... And it's sort of boring..." he replied. Vieille tensed. Was the lava slug being brave, or was it just stupid?

The Lucario stayed silent for a second. In place of a reply, he instead kicked the pokemon off the mountain, to face a similar fate as the Macargo before it. The lava still on his foot didn't seem to bother the Lucario.

"The next idiot to say or do anything without permission is going to get much worse," he threatened, before resuming his pacing.

"I can definitely sense a highly concentrated source of Aera somewhere around here," he continued. Vieille's eyes widened. He was talking about Veeria. "But I have come to the conclusion that the Sky Guardian is not on this mountain. The source must have stayed here overnight, which would explain the build-up of Aera. We will keep going, and we will catch up to this Shaymin."

With that, the Lucario turned and stalked off in the direction that Veeria had been planning to go in with Vieille. Vieille turned around to see Veeria, her expression unreadable.

"They want to kill me," she whispered.

"They won't. It'll be okay," Vieille tried to assure her, though his words seemed empty.

"No it won't," Veeria replied, her voice beginning to rise. "Did you see how many pokemon there were?! They'll find me eventually, and when they do, I'll die!" She looked at the ground to hide the fact that her eyes were moist, but the soft sound of her tears hitting rock gave her away.

"No." Vieille said forcefully. "They won't find you. They'll find _us._ And when they do, _we_ will not die." Veeria looked up at him, her eyes sparkling.

"I thought... that you were going to leave after this..." she whispered. Vieille smiled and shook his head.

"Why would I do that?" he asked.

"Because those guys are scary," she replied. "We're only five human years old! What kind of idiot would be brave enough to face those pokemon?!" Vieille smiled.

"Me," he answered without hesitation. "And I know that you are too. You're a Sky Guardian, who easily has enough Aera power to beat anyone into Arceus's Hall of Origin." Veeria's eyes widened.

"I-I wouldn't kill anyone..." she protested, shaking her head.

"You won't have to," Vieille assured. "They'll be too scared of your power and they'll run away. End of story." Veeria sighed and went up to the entrance. She poked her head out and looked left and right. The sight was clear.

"Well... What do we do now?" she asked.

"We keep going. I thought that was supposed to be obvious," Vieille replied.

"I know that, but where?" Veeria asked, turning around. "We obviously can't continue the way we were planning to." Vieille nodded and looked up at the ceiling, thinking.

"I know," he said after a while. "There's a town in these mountains somewhere. It's a PokeTown, so there's no humans. They'll have shops, stores, and even a rescue team guild." Veeria blinked and stared at him.

"Did you memorize a map of the region or something?" she asked.

"Yes."

"Well then, Vieille, Explorer of the World, lead the way," she teased. Vieille smiled and brushed past Veeria, stepping into the outside. Veeria popped out after him, and took a deep breath of the fresh air.

"It was really stuffy in there," Veeria complained. "It feels good to finally be outside again!" Vieille nodded absentmindedly, his back turned to her. He seemed to be taking in the surroundings and trying to figure out which direction to go.

Veeria went up to stand by his side. She scanned the mountainous region, similar to what Vieille was doing. All she saw were rocks, stones, and boulders, not to mention the gigantic and steep cliffs.

"So umm... Which way do we go?" Veeria asked, completely lost. Vieille laughed and motioned by raising a paw.

"That way," he pawed at the air in front of him. Veeria directed her attention to the direction Vieille had pointed out.

"I don't see much over there," she said with a frown. All she could see were, well, more rocks. Vieille chuckled.

"It's a bit of an explorers' town," he explained. "Unless you've been there before, you probably won't even know about, let alone be able to find it."

"Then how are you supposed to find it the first time?" Veeria asked, confused. Vieille smiled.

"On accident."

"Explorers are strange types..." Veeria muttered, though she purposely said it loud enough for him to hear.

"Oh really?" he asked sarcastically. "What gave it away?" Veeria sighed.

"Whatever, let's go," she said, motioning for him to lead. Vieille nodded and began on the rough path, moving slowly as not to slip and fall to his death. Veeria took another deep breath of the crisp but dusty air. She walked behind Vieille, sticking close by him. He didn't seem to mind. They traveled in silence for around an hour, before Veeria decided to take a look over the edge of the cliffside.

She gulped. They were really high up. Normally, heights wouldn't scare her at all, but after the incident with those Spearow, she'd developed a paranoia of sorts.

Bird pokemon appeared out of nowhere and began to peck at her and unbalance her, sending her teetering dangerously close to the edge of the cliff. "No!" she screamed. "Stop!" Feathers and wings blocked her sight, while beaks stabbed at her body. Her back paw reached open air. She would've fallen if it weren't for Vieille grabbing her collar fur with his teeth.

"Let go of me!" she cried helplessly, kicking at Vieille, who she thought was a flock of Spearow. Vieille grunted as one of her blows connected, but he ignored it and hauled her to safety. As soon as they were on solid ground, he pinned her.

"Veeria!" he shouted. "You're imagining it! There's nothing here!" Veeria's thrashing soon settled down and she began whimpering and shaking. "That's right," he said softly. "Just calm down."

The bodies of Spearow disappeared and Veeria returned to reality, finding herself pinned securely but not uncomfortably under Vieille. "V-Vi-Vieille..." She whimpered, her heart thudding.

"Veeria, it's okay. You're okay. You imagined all of it," Vieille told her in a soothing tone. "I'm going to let go of you now. There's nothing around here, so you don't need to fight anything, okay?" he asked. Veeria took a shaky breath and nodded. Vieille got off her, and she shakily got back up, managing to stand on wobbly legs.

"I... I t-think I'm okay now..." she said. Vieille nodded.

"Let's keep going then. But if you need to rest, just tell me," he replied, before turning around and walking slowly. Veeria followed clumsily, sometimes losing her footing, sometimes slipping, and sometimes just tripping over her own legs. Vieille constantly shot worried glances back at her. It wasn't until Veeria tripped and fell forward, only to be caught by Vieille, did she finally ask to stop.

"I... I-I need some rest," she stuttered. Vieille nodded, worried for her well-being, and sat down on a patch of grass, offering her a seat next to him. Veeria instantly collapsed and rested against Vieille's shoulder. He flinched a bit at her touch, surprised from the contact, but he relaxed and settled down, watching the clouds go by. There was a long silence before either of them said anything.

"I'm glad we're friends," Veeria whispered, truly grateful for Vieille being there. Vieille smiled.

"I wouldn't want it any other way," he replied. "Are you recovering from your... episode?" Veeria smiled weakly and nodded.

"Yes, thanks to you," she said. Then she yawned.

"Sleepy?" Vieille asked. Veeria nodded. "Go ahead then. I won't mind." Veeria smiled again and closed her eyes, quickly falling asleep. To any other pokemon, the two would've looked cute, with one young Eevee leaning against another. But to Vieille, it was more of a matter of Veeria's well-being, Veeria's needs, and Veeria's cuteness.

As soon as he was sure that Veeria was asleep, he unstrapped a familiar leather pouch from his neck, pulling out a familiar-looking book and a familiar-looking bottle of ink. He uncorked the bottle and began to flip through the pages of his explorer's log, smiling when he reached an empty page. He glanced over at Veeria before dipping his claw in the ink, crouching over the paper, and beginning his work.

* * *

**The scene I'm imagining in my mind for this end is just too cute. Hopefully we'll get some pictures of these two together. *HINT HINT* *COUGH* FANART *COUGH* No just kidding. My stories aren't good enough to deserve fanart XD. I might invest some time to get something like that done on my own. That is, if I can find somewhere in my timeframe to do it, and then I have to make the decision not to be lazy. **


	8. Chapter 8

**Filler time! Today we have Vieille guest starring in the filler! **

*Poof*  
Vieille: "Huh? When did I get here?"

Just now!

Vieille: "Where is this?"

The filler. It's the giant thing in the sky, if you ever notice it.

"?"

Egh. That's not the point for bringing you here. You're going to tell us a secret now. Tell us, what are you always drawing in that book of yours? How come you never let Veeria see it?

Vieille: "...It's a secret..."

That's the point. Now tell me I mean us.

Vieille: "..."

You know what I'm just going to take the book.

Vieille: *Eats book*

VIEILLE YOU LITTLE FU-

**Please stand by, we are experiencing technical difficulties.**

Veeria awoke quietly from her nap, relaxed and calm, glad that she was able to rest. She blinked the sleepiness from her eyes and saw that she was still leaning against Vieille, using his entire body as a pillow. Once again he was sketching away at his book, turned away from her.

"Hey Vieille," she greeted him. Vieille immediately slapped his journal shut at the sound of her voice, practically jumping ten feet into the air in the process. Veeria burst out laughing, while Vieille's cheeks had turned crimson with embarrassment.

"Don't scare me like that!" he exclaimed, saying it a little more forcefully than he would've liked. "I'm not a fan of jump scares!" Veeria blinked and looked down at the ground.

"I'm sorry..." she mumbled, hiding her hurt look. Vieille felt a ping of guilt, so he took a paw and rested it under Veeria's chin. He lifted her head up to look at him. She tensed.

"No... I'm sorry," he said. "I shouldn't have snapped like that. Please forgive me." Veeria nodded, though her hurt was still apparent.

"Lets just... keep going..." she replied, trying not to meet his gaze. Vieille frowned and released her, to take the lead again. Veeria followed behind, staring at the beaten dirt road the entire time.

Because she wasn't paying attention to the path, she didn't realize that a sharp turn was up ahead until it was too late. She cried out as her front paws met air and she began to fall. Her tumble was stopped sharply when she felt something grab hold of her back legs. She craned her neck and saw that it was none other than Vieille, his eyes wide with worry.

Veeria looked back down and immediately squeezed her eyes shut, wishing she hadn't. Below her was thin air for more than seventy-five feet, only to be broken by the hard ground at the bottom. A river ran along the valley floor, the rapid water crushing anything that got in its way. "V-Vieille!" she screamed, shaking in fear, but having the sense not to thrash around.

"I-It's o-okay," Vieille said, though the quiver in his voice gave away his fear. "I-I'll get you up..." he began heaving, trying to pull her onto the safety of solid ground, but to no avail. Instead, he began slipping, moving closer and closer to the edge.

"Veeria! I'm slipping!" Vieille shouted, hind paws scrambling for leverage. Veeria cringed.

"J-Just... Just l-let go of m-me..." she told him. Vieille's jaw dropped, though she couldn't see it.

"Are you crazy?!" he asked. "I'd never do that!"

"You'll die too if you keep holding on... Just let go..." Veeria begged, though she was scared out of her wits.

"Then I'll die!" Vieille shouted back. "I'd rather die with you than live with the guilt of not being strong enough to save you!" Veeria's eyes shot open and she managed to look back up at him, making eye contact.

"R-Really?" she asked hesitantly. "I thought... that you just wanted me to help you find Sky Summit, and then you were going to take off... Because you love to explore..."

"How could you think that?" Vieille asked, a little hurt, but he managed to push the feeling aside. "We've really become friends, I promise. I'm really happy that I can call you a companion, and I'm going to make sure our friendship lasts as long as possible." A few short seconds of silence followed. Vieille began to get worried. If he didn't hurry up, they would both end up broken at the bottom of a gorge.

"But how are you going to get me up there?" Veeria asked, despair in her voice. "There's no way..."

"Can't you just use Aera?" Vieille asked. Veeria shook her head.

"I'm too stressed," she explained. "You can't hear it, but my heart is beating faster than a Jolteon can run. I can't focus." Vieille felt himself slip and skid a few feet forward, now standing at the very edge of the cliff. He quickly estimated that he had only five seconds left, before he tumbled over the edge with her.

Vieille started by pushing backwards, trying to gain even just one inch of ground.

Four.

One second wasted. He tried to dig into the ground with his claws, only for them to be met by sliding rock.

Three.

His heart began beating quickly. He tried jumping back. He failed, not earning anything but a sharp cry from Veeria as her head bonked against the rock.

Two.

It was hopeless. They were going to die. But Vieille still didn't give up, and continued to search for some way out.

One.

Something sparked. With one huge heave, he pulled Veeria up and over the edge, falling backwards onto the ground, the shiny Eevee ending up on top of him. As soon as she registered what had just happened, she buried her face in his chest fur and began sobbing into it. Vieille awkwardly stroked her head with a paw, trying to calm her down, and ignoring his own aching joints.

"It's okay now Veeria," he said softly. "You're okay."

"V-Vieille..." Veeria sniffed, completely terrified. Vieille simply nodded and continued to pet her, waiting for her to calm down. Eventually she did, drawing away from him and sitting up so that he was no longer pinned under her body.

"Are you okay?" he asked, getting up and shaking the dirt from his fur.

"Y-Yes... T-Thank you..." she answered, looking at her paws. Vieille didn't know what to make of it, so he stayed silent. "I... I'm sorry..." she whispered.

"For what?" Vieille asked.

"I wasn't paying attention... I could've gotten you killed..." she apologized. "I... I can't stand how nice you're being... Please... Be mad at me... I feel too guilty..."

"I could never be mad at you," Vieille told her, the statement only tightening the knot in her stomach. "And I'd rather die helping you than die alone, exploring some unknown land." Veeria sniffed and looked up.

"But I thought exploring was your life," she said. Vieille nodded.

"It is. But there's more to life than what I want to do with it," he replied. "Friends. Friends are the most important part of life.I'd rather spend my life with a friend doing something I hate, than spend my life alone doing something I love." Veeria's stomach loosened completely. She was silent, struck by his words.

"Come on, let's keep going," Vieille said. "That is, unless you want to stop." Veeria shook her head. She fell in step next to Vieille rather than behind this time. Vieille made sure he stayed on his right side so that she was as far away from the edge as possible. She didn't seem to mind.

The next few hours were spent in silence. Vieille could tell Veeria was beginning to get tired, stumbling occasionally, and letting out pants. He had asked her if she wanted to rest many times already, but each time she had refused. But now, he was starting to get really worried. She seemed fatigued, tripping and slipping every few seconds, deviating from the path a little, and occasionally letting out groans of discomfort.

"We're stopping," Vieille said firmly. Veeria shook her head, though every muscle in her body screamed at her to accept. "I don't care what you say. We're stopping right now." Veeria just sighed and nodded, before collapsing onto the ground. Her legs were burning from the exertion, while her lungs burned worked to pump air into her body. She coughed a few times.

"I'm really thirsty," she said hoarsely. She coughed again, clearing her throat. "How much longer until we reach that town?" she asked in a clearer voice.

Vieille nodded, feeling parched as well. "I figure we can get there by tonight, if we don't take too long with resting here." Veeria sighed and nodded.

"Is there any water near here?" she asked, feeling like she wouldn't be able to move another inch even if she wanted to. Vieille nodded. He unstrapped his leather pouch from his neck and pulled out a new item - A small plastic container, in the shape of a pokeball.

"What's that?" Veeria asked. Vieille shook the thing.

"Dunno. Humans use it. But it holds water," he said. He uncapped the... thing with a claw and looked inside, frowning. "Huh. I guess I forgot to refill this. I was going to do that a while ago... Why didn't I?" Veeria blinked. "Oh right... it was because I met you, and I completely forgot."

"So, how much is in there?" she asked, hoping that there would at least be a little for her after Vieille was finished drinking.

"Not very much. Take a look," he said, tipping the container towards her. She frowned at the measly amount, only enough to take the edge off of one pokemon's thirst.

"Oh well... I can wait," Veeria said. "You have it. I'll wait until we get to town." Vieille shook his head vigorously at the suggestion.

"No way," he replied. "You take it." Veeria sighed, sensing an argument coming.

"Look, Vieille, I can move faster and just fly over there when we get close enough," she reasoned. "And you've already done too much for me, while I've done nothing but almost get us killed. Please, you have it."

"No," he protested. "I can last longer without water. I once had to go two days without it, because I got trapped under a fallen tree while exploring. Plus, how are you supposed to even find the town without me?" Veeria had to admit that he had a point, but there was no way she was going to accept the water.

"Please..." she begged, resorting to kit eyes. "Please..." she looked at him with the biggest, cutest eyes she could muster.

No effect. Vieille tipped the container, threatening to spill the precious liquid onto the ground.

"Either you have it, or neither of us has it," he said firmly. Silence. Veeria's mind and body screamed at her to take the water and get over with it, but her heart kept her planted where she was. There was no way she would deny Vieille of such an essential material. Vieille tipped it even further, allowing a single drop of water to be spilt onto the rocky ground.

"...Fine," Veeria sighed, giving in. "It wouldn't really make sense if both of us had to get to town thirsty..." she reluctantly accepted the container from Vieille and tipped it back, allowing the water to flow into her dry mouth and down her dry throat. The small volume of liquids rushed past her gullet, only just moistening her throat.

She sighed and gave Vieille the container back. He nodded and re-capped it, then dropped it into his bag. He strapped the pouch against his neck again and turned, stepping to the side so that Veeria could walk next to him.

"Right. Let's get a move on," he said, looking up at the sky. They had three hours to reach the town, or else they would have to camp out. And Vieille really didn't want to have to camp out. Veeria nodded and the two started off again, traveling along just a few of the many mountains in the region.

One hour.

Nothing much happened during the first hour. They walked, with some small conversations in-between. At the end of hour one, both of them were still feeling fine and able to keep going.

Two hours.

Vieille began to feel the effects of dehydration. He began feeling weaker, but pushed it away and forced himself to keep going, despite the fact that he desperately needed water, and soon. As the remnants of hour two drifted away, and the beginning of the third hour came by, he began to feel dizzy and disoriented.

Two hours, thirty minutes.

He couldn't tell the difference between left and right anymore without Veeria's help. He had originally thought he could stick it out for way longer; it seems he had failed to include the fact that the mountain was dry and with every breath he took he received a mouthful of dust to go with it. Making it to town was now the only thing on both their minds.

Three hours.

That was it, Vieille was done. He fainted on the spot, completely drained by his efforts and the lack of fluids in him. They were still nowhere near the town - at least, that was the way it seemed. Veeria couldn't see the signs of civilization anywhere. She began by trying to shake Vieille awake.

"Vieille!" she shouted. Nothing. "Wake up! Vieille!" She quickly checked his vitals - They were still there, but without water, would soon disappear. She needed to get to town, but there was one problem: She had no idea where it was.

"Vieille! We need to get to town, remember?!" she exclaimed, her panic levels rising. She gave up on trying to revive him and instead bean pacing around, trying to remember what he had told her about directions.

"It's_ a bit of an explorers' town." _Veeria stopped in her tracks. Yes! This was it! If she could just remember a little more... _"...Unless you've been there before, you probably won't know about it, let alone be able to find it."_

_"Then how are you supposed to find it the first time?" _Veeria frowned. Her memory ended there. She couldn't remember Vieille's answer. She looked at him, suddenly wondering how she had ended up in this situation. Vieille had given her the water he needed. No... the reason was before that. The Lucario had cut off their other route. No... The water incident would've happened regardless...

It was when they became friends.

How did they become friends?Their meeting was then replayed in Veeria's mind. She smiled. She had found out the answer to both her questions.

"On accident," she mouthed. She grabbed Vieille and mounted him on her back, running in a random direction. She had to pray to Arceus that she would be lucky enough to find the secret villa, or else Vieille would die. One minute ticked by. Then two. Soon, ten minutes had gone by, and there was still no town in sight. She figured she would have to look more carefully, or maybe in a different area.

Ten minutes later, she still turned up empty. She checked Vieille's pulse again and her heart stopped when she didn't hear anything.

Vieille was d-

_Thump._ Not quite dead yet. His pulse was still there, but it was slow. She frantically dragged him over to a nearby rock wall, hoping to get him in the shade. As she lay against the stone, she had to shift a few times, trying to get comfortable. But no matter what she did, something poked against her back, annoying her to the point where she growled and turned around.

A crack, big enough for her and Vieille, in the cliffside. Expertly hidden in its own shadow, the cave entrance could've only been found the way Veeria had found it: By touching it. Though she knew exploring a cave wasn't even near to her top priority, her curiosity got the better of her and she squeezed inside.

She gasped.

The cave was huge. It was a large, circular chamber of curving rock wall. She stood on the far end of the huge room, while a huge gate stood at the other. The gate seemed to have been carved out of stone as well, just like everything else. Two pokemon were standing on either side of the gate, probably acting as guards. Veeria cautiously approached them.

"Don't worry, we won't bite," the first pokemon, an Umbreon assured. Veeria still hesitated. If something... went wrong, there was no way she could fend off the Umbreon and Espeon duo.

"What do you need?" The Espeon asked in a sweet voice. Veeria felt a little better now. She hadn't expected them to be this kind.

"M-My friend needs water," she said.

"Where is he?" the Umbreon inquired.

"Outside. He fainted a while ago," she answered.

"Get him. Now," the Umbreon ordered. "We'll allow you inside. As soon as you get in, take a left and keep going." Veeria seemed to understand the gravity of the situation and quickly hurried outside. She carried Vieille on her back as she popped back into the cave, running into the town. Like the Umbreon had told her to, she dashed left and went as fast as she could, ignoring the stares and mutters from other pokemon as she passed.

A pond was up ahead. She put on an extra burst of speed to reach the water quicker, and as soon as she did she dropped Vieille onto the ground, dug around his neck fur for a leather strap, and then ripped away the pouch. She quickly opened it and searched for the plastic container, pulling it out and stumbling over to the pond.

Just before the container hit the surface, a paw grabbed hold of her arm. She yelped out and dropped the container, and it landed on solid ground. She turned her head to see a Riolu looking at her furiously.

"Just what do you think you're doing?!" he asked angrily.

"I-I..." she began, confused.

The Riolu slapped her, sending sparks of pain throughout her head. Her eyes widened. He brought his paw back for another slap, and Veeria closed her eyes, waiting for it.

"You can't have this water. It's mine. And I'm not sharing," he hissed, before giving her the slap she was waiting for.

"P-Please..." she begged, feeling tears leak from her closed eyes. "M-My friend needs it..."

"I decide what I do with my water," the Riolu sneered, punching her this time. She cried out and crumpled to the ground, only for him to begin kicking her. She simply lay there, enduring the hits. Boy, could the kid land a hit. Every single blow felt like a boulder ten times her size being dropped on her, and the pain she felt afterwards was unbearable.

"Please... P-Please..." she pleaded helplessly, feeling herself starting to slip into unconsciousness. Her vision was blurry from crying, so all she did was wait for each hit to land.

_Thump._

_Thump._

The third time, nothing. Instead of feeling a kick or punch, she heard a scream. She managed to bring a paw up to her eyes and wipe away the tears, to see another Riolu, this one shiny, shoving the first away. The shiny Riolu brought her fist into his chest in a powerful force palm attack, sending him flying and knocking him out instantly.

Veeria relaxed, assuming that this pokemon came to help them. Her head flopped back onto the stone floor and she blacked out.

* * *

**Whew, what an ending. Will Vieille die? Probably not. What will become of Veeria? And most importantly, who is their heroine, this shiny Riolu? Find out in the next chapter of Fly Away From Fate!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Another Filler...**

**I recently joined LakeValor! (Yesterday) LakeValor is an online Pokemon community that is relatively new. It offers forums for art, roleplays, contests, and just about anything that has to do with Pokemon, including a fanfiction section! I highly recommend you check it out! I would put a link here, but I'm too lazy.**

**The few reviews this story has gotten make me smile! It's great to see that I'm able to entertain people with my writing! To LucyAngelicShadow, I post chapters as soon as I'm done with them, so you generally see something from me at least once every three days. To Feral, maybe Vieille IS drawing inappropriate pictures of Veeria XD. We'll (maybe) find out eventually.**

"Almost there!" Veeria shouted, sprinting towards the reservoir of water, with an unconscious Vieille on her back. Upon reaching the pond, she dropped him on the ground, unstrapped his leather pouch, and pulled out a plastic pokeball shaped container. She uncapped it as Vieille had done a while ago and pushed it towards the surface, only to be stopped by a familiar blue paw.

The Riolu yanked her arm back, making her drop the container onto the dirt. He began beating her with kicks and punches, not bothering to say anything. Although she was in a dream, the hits hurt.

Veeria soon blacked out from the rough treatment.

She awoke, pain forgotten, at the gate to the explorers' town. Vieille was on her back again, and he needed water, again.

Veeria was stuck in an infinitely looping nightmare. She, being unaware of the situation, hurriedly rushed to the pond once more, only to be stopped by a dastardly little Riolu once more. The only difference was that the other shiny Riolu that she remembered never came to save her.

She tried again. He stopped her again. She went once more. He stopped her once more.

Veeria soon gave up, resolving that she would never be able to reach her goal. She collapsed and began sobbing into the cold hard ground, wishing to be away from the hopelessness of the situation.

She felt a slap.

Her eyes shot open. A shiny Riolu was looking down at her with a worried expression on her face. As soon as Veeria's eyes had opened, however, her look turned to one of relief.

"Good, you're awake," she sighed. "Sorry for slapping you. You didn't seem to be waking up. And when you started crying out, I began to get worried." Veeria opened her mouth to respond, but only a cough came out. She realized that her throat felt like sandpaper.

"W-Water..." she said hoarsely. The Riolu nodded and then left, probably to get some of the heavenly liquid. While she waited, Veeria surveyed her surroundings. She was in a nice little stone room, with precisely carved walls. The ceiling was dotted with short stalactites, giving the room some texture. The room felt homey, so she assumed that it was her abode. She turned her head and saw Vieille, still passed out, on a bed of wool close by.

"V-Vieille!" she croaked out, sitting upright. Her body throbbed with pain at the sudden movement, causing her to lay back down with a groan. Just as her head touched down on the soft white fluff, her rescuer came back with a familiar plastic container clutched in her paw.

Veeria lifted her head as the shiny Riolu tilted the pokeball container back, her gullet absorbing the water like a patch of barren earth. As soon as she had gotten enough liquids into her system, she coughed and spoke.

"What about my friend?" she asked anxiously. She nodded.

"Don't worry. I already got him some," she replied. Veeria sighed with relief and laid back down. The Riolu giggled.

"Huh? What's so funny?" Veeria asked.

"You two are really close, aren't you?" she asked, smiling. Veeria's cheeks flushed red at the implied meaning.

"We're only friends!" she exclaimed.

"Well, you're cute together," the Riolu said.

"Anyway, thank you for helping us," Veeria said, changing the subject.

"My name is Rina," the Riolu introduced herself, extending a paw. Veeria blinked, not knowing what to make of the gesture. Rina shook her head and retracted the yellow limb. "Sorry, I guess you can't really shake paws, can you?" she asked. Veeria looked down at her own quadrupled body and nodded.

"Well... whatever. I'm Veeria," she replied. "And my friend over there is-"

"Veeria!" Vieille screamed suddenly, shooting up in the makeshift bed. Rina rushed over to Vieille, who was panting heavily. "What a nightmare..." he said, relaxing.

Rina's eyes widened. She recognized that voice. "V-Vieille?" she asked incredulously. Vieille looked at her, only for his own eyes to expand.

"Rina? Is that you?" he asked. She smiled.

"I can't believe it's actually you!" she exclaimed, pulling him into a hug. Veeria blinked, getting a strange feeling she didn't understand.

"Well, of course it's me, dummy," Vieille replied, a wide smile on his face. "Do you know any other Eevee with the same color fur as me?"

"No," Rina said. "But I just didn't think it was possible... You told me yourself: You never visit the same place twice." Vieille shrugged.

"Well I guess I lied then," he said. Rina frowned.

"Speaking of which, how come you're here?" she asked. Veeria coughed, interrupting their conversation.

"Can anyone explain what's going on?" she asked. "I'm really confused..."

"Oh right..." Vieille said sheepishly. "I bet you already know that I've been here before, right?" he asked. Veeria nodded. "Well, the last time I was here, I met Rina while shopping for oran berries. We got to talking and became friends. She offered to give me a place to stay for the next few days, so I agreed."

Veeria nodded slowly.

"So, how come you came by?" Rina asked.

"We're going to-" Vieille began.

"We're visiting someplace nearby," Veeria interrupted, shooting him a look. "Vieille said something about this town, so we thought we'd come here since it was along the way." Rina nodded, thinking nothing of Veeria's cover up.

"Alright. But how come I found Vieille half-dead and you being hit by... that Riolu?" she asked.

"Long story..." Vieille said sheepishly. "I sort of... forgot to re-fill my water supply..." Rina brought a paw to her face.

"Arceus, Vieille, you're an idiot," she muttered. Vieille smiled and shrugged.

"Yup," he agreed.

"Who was that Riolu anyway?" Veeria asked. Rina took her paw away from her head and let it swing to her side.

"My brother," she said, sighing. "Honestly though, sometimes I can't believe we're related." Veeria smiled. It was true, Rina and her brother seemed nothing alike.

"He said I couldn't have any water because it was his," Veeria told her with a frown. "Why was that?" Rina nodded.

"That's half-true. My family owns that reservoir. It's on our portion of land," she explained. "My brother uses the thing the most, so he's pretty much claimed ownership of it at this point." Veeria blinked.

"I don't get it," she said, confused. "I saw you knock him out with a single hit. How come you can't just order him to let others use it?" Rina shrugged.

"Most people know to stay away from that place. There's plenty of other free water sources, you know," she explained. Veeria nodded, deciding not to pursue the matter any longer.

"Your brother seemed really weak," she said. Rina giggled.

"No, it's just that I'm really strong," she replied. "In this town, there are designated battle squares for pokemon of different ages. My brother and I fall into category two, which is comprised of pokemon around our age. Fighters have ranks, which tell others how strong they are."

"The last time I came, Rina was first place!" Vieille cut in. "I saw her fight! It was so cool! Hey, Rina, are you still first?" Rina smiled and nodded.

"Yup. I managed to stay at the top while you were away," she said. "But my brother somehow climbed the ranks and now he's second place," she added with a frown. "It's really weird. He always loses to me super quickly, but he can beat anyone below us without any problem."

"Is that... abnormal?" Veeria asked. Rina shrugged.

"I dunno. Maybe I'm just being weird," she said. "The last pokemon who was second place could drag out a match with me for a long time."

"Hey, do you think you can show us a battle?" Veeria asked. "You could bring Vieille and I with you to a battle square!" Vieille jumped up to his paws, tiredness forgotten.

"That's a great idea!" he exclaimed. "Can we, Rina?" She smiled and nodded.

"Sure. Veeria, do you think you can make it there?" she asked. Veeria nodded.

"I'll be fine. I'm only sore, that's all," she said. Vieille smiled as Veeria stretched out and got up. "But my sides really hurt," she complained. Vieille then took the liberty of offering his shoulder to lean on a bit as they walked.

Veeria smiled and nodded a thanks. "Let's go," Rina said, taking the lead and walking out of the stone house. The two Eevee followed close behind, with Veeria walking right next to Vieille, who offered some relief from her aching sides.

The three maneuvered through the underground city, which was so big that it seemed to take up the entire mountain. Vieille and Rina didn't bother to glance at their surroundings, but Veeria, the newcomer, was staring at everything, her jaw dropped the entire time.

Huge crystals of varying colors were everywhere. There was green, blue, red, yellow, orange, and even purple. They were all different sizes and some were carved and polished. The crystals had two things in common and those were the fact that they were all exceedingly rare, and they were all placed outside or near buildings.

"What's with all of these jewels?" Veeria asked, awestruck. Rina glanced behind her and laughed at her expression. The city usually had that effect on newcomers.

"This town is overall, rich," she said. "And by rich, I mean RICH. Even Arceus would be impressed." Veeria nodded, though her wonder was still not fulfilled. "You see, the color, size, and clarity of these gems determine how much they're worth," Rina continued. "All the inhabitants of the town use crystals to express their wealth and standing, whether it be by showcasing it outdoors or by other methods."

Veeria nodded. A beautiful emerald crystal, carved in the shape of a rose, caught her attention. "Woah! What's that one worth?" she asked Rina.

"Oh that," the Riolu said casually, though her eyes were sparkling as well. "That crystal is the Verdanna Ipsum. It belongs to one of the richest pokemon here. He runs a mining company that supplies the town with materials such as stone and even crystals."

"Do you even use poke as money here?" Veeria asked. "It seems like all of you are rich enough to just use jewels!" Rina giggled.

"Of course we use poke, silly!" she exclaimed. Veeria sighed in relief. "Jewels have too high a value to be used to buy things like oran berries!" Veeria's jaw dropped.

"Is that the only reason?!" she asked incredulously.

"Yup." Vieille chuckled.

"I sold one of my maps once for a purple crystal that was completely transparent," he claimed. Veeria smiled.

"I'm not surprised. Your art is amazing anyway," she said.

"Hey, were here!" Rina shouted excitedly. Veeria and Vieille directed their attention to her. Vieille smiled at the familiar sight, but Veeria's jaw dropped and her eyes widened.

An arena, made entirely out of rock and crystal, sat to the side of the paved stone road.

The most noticeable feature was the gigantic ruby clock hanging on the exterior. It displayed the time with sapphire blue arrows, pointing towards dials and dashes of the same color. The walls were beautifully polished granite, which contained lots of the large crystals that Veeria had encountered.

"Let's go in, shall we?" Rina suggested, motioning with her paw to a large gate. Veeria and Vieille nodded and the three took off, Rina in the lead.

At the front entrance there was a Breloom.

"Ahh, Rina!" the pokemon greeted her. Rina smiled and bowed.

"Hello, Brin," she said. "These are my two friends, Veeria and-"

"I still remember Vieille," he said, smiling. "I assume you're here to fight?" Rina broke her position of respect and nodded.

"Yes," she answered.

"Go on ahead," Brin offered, stepping to the side. Rina, Veeria, and Vieille nodded as they passed the Breloom, walking into the building. They were immediately greeted by the sounds of battle.

Currently, a Croagunk and a Sneasel were going at it. Veeria watched the two exchange blows for a few seconds before turning back to Rina.

"How does this place work?" she asked.

"First, I go over there," she replied, pointing to a small group of pokemon. Their ages varied, but they were all within the premature range. "Someone has to challenge me. Fighters can only challenge pokemon of a higher ranking. Therefore, I'm not allowed to challenge anyone, so my only job is to defend my title." After finishing her sentence she left to go stand in the group, waiting for a request.

"Let's go over here," Vieille said, motioning to a set of seats on the side of the stone field. Veeria nodded and allowed him to lead her over, and the two sat down just as the fight going on ended.

"Looks like that Sneasel won," Veeria commented. "I wonder who's going to fight next." Vieille nodded. As if on cue, a Zubat took up a position on one side, while a Riolu stood on the other. Veeria's eyes widened as she realized who it was.

"Vieille!" she hissed. "That's the Riolu who attacked me!" Vieille nodded, his attention focused completely on the fight that was about to occur.

The Zubat started with a wing attack. Big mistake. The Riolu stood there, waiting for his opponent to come near. As soon as the bat pokemon did, he jumped quickly to the side and brought a clenched paw down on the pokemon's back, knocking it to the ground. Already, he had won.

He nodded as the beaten Zubat flew away, wobbling in its path of flight. Instead of leaving, however, he turned and pointed to the crowd of fighters.

"Rina!" he barked. "I challenge you!" The crowd parted to reveal the other shiny Riolu, standing with her arms crossed. She smiled.

"Took you long enough," she said as she stalked to the other side. She took up her position and got into a defensive stance, facing him. "Show me what you've got, little brother," she taunted, officially starting the fight. Her brother sprung forward and swung an arm at Rina's head, hoping to catch her by surprise.

Rina simply raised her own arm to block. The attack and defense collided with such force that Veeria could practically feel it. Rina's brother growled and followed up with a kick. He was using double kick, trying to get lots of hits in. Rina flipped over the first kicked, spun in the air, and brought her own leg down upon her brother's back, shoving him forwards.

Rina landed gracefully and put up her arms again, motioning for him to make another move. Her opponent turned and ran at her, sliding once he was in range. He began turning, planning to sweep Rina's legs and send her crashing to the ground. Right before he could hit Rina, however, she performed a forward handspring, slamming her paws into her brother's head in the process. She immediately turned around and waited for him to get up.

He rose up to his feet, still managing to face Rina. He was obviously injured, but leaped at her, attacking with such speed that Veeria's eyes couldn't keep up. Even so, Rina either blocked or dodged every single advance her brother made, as the two were locked in a whirlwind of punches and kicks.

Veeria frowned. Rina wasn't really attacking much. She shrugged it off and figured that she was simply showing off for her and Vieille.

Rina and her brother jumped back. The two stood in their separate stances in opposition for a few seconds, before they both lunged at each other, as if by unspoken agreement. Rina's brother brought his palm forward in one last attack, while Rina did the same. The two attacks met head on, sending a shock wave outwards that blew dust at Veeria's fur.

For a second, it seemed like the two were simply exchanging a brotherly and sisterly high-five. Just a second later, however, after the initial exchange of power, Rina's brother was flung back by the power of his sister's signature move, landing and sprawling out on the ground. Rina sighed and walked over to him. She knelt down and reached out a paw. Her brother slapped it away and got up own his own, proceeding to storm out of the arena.

As soon as he left, the entire area erupted with cheers. All the pokemon lucky enough to have seen the fight had just witnessed the best battle any of them would see for a long time. The only thing that could top that match was if Rina had lost. The crowd of pokemon surrounded Rina and flooded her with congratulations and questions. Rina replied with as few words as she could, quickly and politely. As soon as she had the chance, she made her way over to Veeria and Vieille, who were both still recounting what had just happened.

"That was amazing!" Veeria and Vieille exclaimed at the same time. Rina put a paw behind her head, embarrassed.

"Really?" she asked. "I'm pretty sure Vieille's drawings are what counts as amazing, not my fighting."

"No way!" Vieille protested. "Your fighting is amazing, just in a different way!" Rina smiled. Veeria frowned as a realization dawned on her.

Vieille was a great explorer. Rina was a legendary fighter.

She was nothing. Veeria realized that there was nothing really special about her. She wasn't good at anything. She was just an ordinary pokemon, who couldn't fight, create, or do anything special.

"Veeria, what did you think?" Vieille asked, snapping her out of her negative thoughts.

"Huh? Oh! It was great," she said. Rina smiled.

"I'm glad you said so. How about we go to market to celebrate?" she asked. "Buy a few things, eat some food, it'll be fun!" Vieille smiled.

"Why not?" he agreed. "Let's go! Veeria, are you coming?" Veeria shrugged.

"I guess so," she said.

"Then let's go!" Vieille and Rina exclaimed, dashing off. Veeria nodded half-heartedly and followed them. She stared at the ground as the three went through the town. Rina and Vieille were in front, talking to each other excitedly, while Veeria stayed at the back, wrapped up in her thoughts.

'I feel left out,' she thought disappointedly. 'Am I always just going to be some random pokemon?' she asked herself. Then she shook her head. 'When did I start thinking this way?' She tried not to linger on the thoughts any longer, but her mind kept finding some way to circle back around to the problem. Other than Aera, which didn't really count in her opinion, there was nothing special about her.

Vieille was a great explorer. Rina was a legendary fighter.

Even Rina's brother was much more skilled than Veeria could ever hope to be.

She was nothing.

* * *

**Huh. I wonder how this chapter ended up that way. Somewhere along the line I typed something in absentmindedly, changing the entire chapter... Oh well. **


	10. Chapter 10

**There was no chapter yesterday, sorry about that.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, this story is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of the fanfic with the follow button, and give it some reviews as well! Enjoy!**

Veeria continued to trail behind Rina and Vieille, who seemed to be occupied with their own conversation. Veeria, though she felt left out and terribly alone, tried to make the best of the situation. She glanced around, hoping to raise her spirits by seeing the sights, but not even the glimmering crystals could make her happier.

Veeria looked up ahead again. She could've sworn that Vieille and Rina were now closer than they had been five seconds ago. They were still conversing in excited whispers, not bothering to check if Veeria was even still behind them. Veeria frowned and looked down at the ground, willing Vieille to at least ask her if she was tired, or if she needed to rest, or anything. She didn't need any of those things; she simply wanted Vieille to notice her.

Veeria looked back up to see that both of them were gone. She glanced around frantically, but saw only the bodies of other busy and bustling pokemon. She maneuvered through the crowded streets, keeping an eye out for the explorer and the fighter. She decided that she shouldn't go too far away, or she might not be able to find them.

She entered a nearby shop. Veeria looked around the small market that sold shiny stones, probably evolution stones, Veeria assumed. Vieille nor Rina were there, as Veeria had expected. An Eevee in a shop full of evolution stones had a pretty good chance of evolving on accident. She quickly turned and walked out, heading into the next shop.

This one was a cafe of some sort. A few pokemon sat at tables here and there, sipping drinks such as berry juice or regular water. After concluding that neither of her friends were in the vicinity, she sighed and left. Veeria looked hopelessly around the streets. There were so many shops - too many shops, for Veeria to check every single one of them.

'Well, as long as I can find one of them, I'll find them both,' she thought sourly. She sighed again and looked around, reading the signs that hung along the stone buildings as she went.

There was a move tutoring store, a general market, a poke bank, a storage warehouse, a store selling travelers' items, a snack bar-

Veeria stopped. She re-scanned the sign she had so carelessly skimmed over. It read: "Exeggutor's Explorium: All your needs a peddler-low prices!" She concluded that Vieille was likely to be in such a place and dashed inside. Her hypothesis was proved correct when found Vieille gawking at a set of scarves. Rina was right next to him, standing on her tip-toes to look at the displays on a top shelf.

She stomped over to them sourly, causing the two to turn and look at her. Vieille grinned, seemingly not noticing her annoyance.

"Hey Veeria! Where have you been?" he asked, before turning back to the display. "Look at all those scarves!" Veeria glared at him.

"Thanks for leaving me alone on the street. You're such a great friend," she said angrily, plopping down to sit next to him. Vieille flinched at her words, and sat there in stunned silence. Rina regarded her with a curious manner.

"I..." Vieille began, looking at the ground. "I'm sorry." Veeria snorted and looked away. She had expected more than "sorry." Vieille sighed.

"Look... I'm really sorry," he said. "I just got carried away when I saw the sign... I thought you would be in right behind us."

"You didn't even bother to check if I was still there?" she asked, trying to hide the hurt in her voice, but failing miserably. Vieille winced.

"I... I guess I didn't..." he mumbled, looking at the ground. "I'm sorry." Veeria turned her head to look at him. He seemed genuinely ashamed and he sounded like he meant his apology. Her gaze softened.

"No... I'm sorry," she apologized. "I shouldn't have judged you like that right away. You're really a great friend." Vieille looked up and smiled.

"Apology accepted. Jeez Veeria, you can be so mean sometimes," he joked. Veeria rolled her eyes.

"Whatever. What were you saying about the stuff for sale here?" she asked. Vieille's eyes lit up.

"Oh! They have so many different kinds of scarves here!" he said excitedly. "Look! This one suppresses your hunger, so you can travel for longer without having to stop!" he told her, motioning to an item near the bottom. As Veeria moved over to look at it, something caught her attention.

"A gold ribbon!" she squealed, her eyes shining. The item on display looked like it was made of pure gold, shining and shimmering as it sat in the glass case. "It must be really rare! What does it do?!" Vieille chuckled.

"Nothing. But you can sell it for lots of poke," he replied. Veeria frowned.

"It looks pretty," she commented. "How much is it?"

"Four-thousand poke," Vieille said. Veeria backed away from the glass.

"...Oh." she said, disappointment evident in her voice.

"Don't worry, they're not that hard to find," Vieille said. "That is, if you know where to find them." Veeria looked at him.

"Do you know where to find them?" she asked. Vieille grinned.

"Nope," he said, shaking his head. Veeria's ears drooped.

"Oh well..." she said with a sigh. She turned away from the shelves to scan the rest of the store. A large wall of colorful ribbons caught her interest. As soon as she saw them, she knew she wanted one.

"Hey, Vieille?" she asked, tugging at his neck fur while still staring at the bows. Vieille sighed.

"What do you want to buy now?" he asked.

"Umm... What are those?" she asked, pointing with a paw. Vieille looked over.

"Oh. Those are Aura bows," he said casually.

"How much are they?" Veeria asked.

"Not a lot. They're made for every explorer, and even just regular pokemon. So lots of pokemon should have them, making the price relatively cheap," he explained. Veeria nodded, starting to get interested. Then she frowned.

"I forgot... I don't have money," she said sadly.

"I'll get you one," Vieille offered without hesitation. "What color?"

"Really?" Veeria asked. Vieille smiled and nodded.

"Sure," he replied. "We're friends, aren't we? And after all, I sort of owe you for ditching you on accident."

"Are you sure?" Veeria asked, not wanting to take advantage of him.

"Of course," Vieille said. "They're not even that expensive." Veeria smiled.

"I like that silver one! Because it matches my fur!" she said. Vieille nodded and made his way over to the hangars. He picked out the silver bow that Veeria seemed to want and brought it over to a lively looking Exeggutor, who Veeria guessed was the owner of the store. After some conversation and movement, Vieille brought the gift over to her with a smile.

"Dear Veeria, your parcel has arrived," he said, taking on an eloquent tone. Veeria smiled and propped her arms around him and squeezed, as if she were hugging him.

"Thanks Vieille," she said, smiling.

"It was only one hundred poke," Vieille said, surprised at her action.

"I don't care how much it is," Veeria replied. "You bought it for me, and that's what's important." With that, she donned the silver bow, and just as she had said, it went greatly with her fur color.

"That looks good on you. Cute," Vieille commented, sizing her up. Veeria blushed and looked down at her paws.

"Does it?" she asked shyly. Vieille chuckled.

"Now you're even cuter!" he said, causing her cheeks to flush even more. Rina took notice and decided to say something.

"He's right you know. It should be illegal, how cute you are right now," she said.

"Oh that reminds me Rina, do you want a bow?" Vieille offered. Rina shook her head.

"Nah, I'm fine," she rejected. "I'm not one for looking cute. Besides, I could get one later if I ever wanted to." Veeria stayed silent, still blushing furiously. Suddenly Vieille burst out in laughter.

"What's so funny?" Veeria asked.

"You!" he answered. "You're unbelievably adorable!" he exclaimed, gazing at her. Veeria's blush turned an even deeper crimson.

Rina nudged Vieille. "Come on Vieille, tell her what you really think," she said with a smile. Vieille stopped laughing and looked at her quizzically.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Rina rolled her eyes.

"You know exactly what I mean," she replied.

Veeria looked up, her blush now gone. "What _do _you mean, Vieille?" she asked, curious now. Vieille sighed.

"I think you're pretty," he complimented. "Not just cute." Veeria blushed again as she looked back to the floor.

"T-Thanks," she stuttered. Rina glanced between the two, and sensing an awkward silence about to come on, she coughed.

"I'm bored of shopping. Let's go to my home. You two need a place to stay tonight, right?" she asked. Vieille nodded.

"Yes. Lead the way," he replied. Rina nodded and walked away. Vieille followed right after, leaving Veeria the only one still in the store.

'That was really awkward,' she thought to herself as she dashed out of the store to follow them. She fell in step next to Vieille, wanting to ask him a question. At the moment, he was conversing with Rina, so she decided to wait until there was a silence for her to say something. A minute went by. Then two. Then ten, without a single break in speech from the two pokemon who seemed to be ignoring her yet again.

Veeria frowned and trailed behind slightly. She was being left out, once again. 'Maybe they're having an important discussion,' she thought, hoping it was true. She hadn't really payed attention to what they were saying, only to the fact that they weren't saying anything to her.

Veera busied herself with watching her bow's ribbons flap around. Every once in a while she would glance up ahead, to find that Vieille and Rina were still busy with each other. Veeria shook her head.

'Remember Veeria, he got you a present. You mean something to him, right?' she asked herself. It was then that one of her companions finally checked on her, but instead of it being Vieille like she had hoped, it was Rina.

Veeria frowned and tilted her head. Rina just shrugged in reply before turning forward again. Veeria resolved to go to Rina for a talk about Vieille once they had arrived at their destination.

After an agonizingly long time of silence for Veeria but conversation for Vieille, the three arrived at Rina's stone living quarters.

"After you," Vieille said politely to Rina. Rina smiled and headed inside. Vieille went in directly after, not bothering to lavish the same level of etiquette on Veeria. Veeria sighed and dejectedly stepped in, finding Rina alone in the central chamber.

"Vieille?" Veeria asked, her voice blank.

"He's going to take a nap," Rina replied. Then she sat down on a carved block of stone.

"Rina, can I talk to you?" she asked.

"About Vieille?" Rina inquired. Veeria nodded. "I figured this was coming. Come here, sit down." Veeria followed her directions and took a seat next to her, though she had to jump onto the stone block, seeing as how she was a quadrupled pokemon. Rina studied Veeria as the Eevee looked down sadly at her paws. There was a short minute of silence before Veeria finally spoke up.

"How come Vieille isn't noticing me anymore?" Veeria asked. Rina shrugged.

"I don't know, I've been wondering that too," she replied. "Does this bother you?" she asked in a softer voice, one that didn't much match her character. Veeria nodded.

"Yes," she answered.

"If you don't mind me asking, how come?" Rina asked. Veeria took a deep breath.

"I'm shy," Veeria explained. Rina looked at her with a quizzical look.

"And how does that have to do with anything?" she asked flatly, due to confusion. Veeria frowned, causing Rina to sigh. "I'm sorry. How come this is a problem?" she asked in a kinder voice, scooting closer to the Eevee.

"It means I don't really have friends..." she replied. "Except Vieille and you. But Vieille is more than a friend to me. He's the only thing I really have, the only pokemon I can really trust."

"You don't have family?" she asked. Veeria flinched. "Sorry. I shouldn't have asked that."

"No, it's fine... I had a brother... sort of." Rina blinked. What could she mean by 'sort of'? "I think he's dead now." Veeria's eyes began to get watery. The sound of a tear drop could be heard echoing around the stone room. Rina nodded, starting to connect the dots.

"Vieille, he's someone special to you, isn't he?" she asked. Veeria nodded.

"Yes. Even though I've only known him for a short time, he's done a lot for me. To see him suddenly forget about me completely... it hurts."

"Veeria, can I ask you a bit of a personal question?" she asked. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"O-Okay," she replied.

"Do you like Vieille?" she asked. Veeria's eyes widened.

"As friends," she replied, a bit thrown off by the question. Rina shook her head.

"You said yourself that he's more than a friend to you," she said. Veeria sighed.

"I don't... I don't really know," she replied. "Maybe I do like him that way... But I don't think I do..." Rina nodded.

"Well... Perhaps Vieille just wants to catch up with me," she offered, hoping to ease the little Eevee's worries. "After all, we haven't seen each other in a few years." Veeria looked up.

"You think so?" she asked.

"Yep," Rina answered. "You're probably worried for nothing. As soon as you two get on the road again, you'll be just like you were before coming here." Veeria smiled. "Speaking of which, where are you two going anyway?" Veeria hesitated. Should she really tell Rina?

"Sky Summit," Veeria answered. Of course she should. Rina was a friend of Vieille, so she could be trusted.

"Sky Summit?!" Rina exclaimed, shock written all over her face. Veeria blinked, studying Rina's face. Did she just hide the faintest of smirks? Or did she just imagine it? Veeria nodded.

"Yes," she answered.

"For what?" Rina asked incredulously. "What could you possibly want with the Sky Guardians?"

"It's... confidential," she answered. "I really can't tell you. I'm sorry Rina." Rina nodded in understanding.

"That's fine. Everybody has secrets," she replied.

"Even you?" Veeria asked. She nodded.

"Yep," Rina answered. "Everybody does. I'm sure Vieille has some as well." Veeria nodded and smiled.

"He does!" she exclaimed. "He would sometimes draw in his little notebook, but never tell or show me what he's doing."

"My point exactly," Rina said with a smile.

"So what do you think I should do about him?" Veeria asked. Rina thought for a moment.

"Go talk to him. What you want to say is up to you," she suggested. Veeria smiled and nodded.

"Okay. Thanks Rina," she said. "So, where is he?"

"Over there," she replied, motioning with a paw to a room behind her. Veeria nodded and dashed off, entering the room to see a sleeping Vieille, lying on a bed of wools. Veeria quietly padded up to him and shook his body experimentally with her two fore paws.

"Vieille?" Veeria whispered. "Wake up."

Vieille groaned quietly and turned over. Veeria shook him again. He growled and opened his eyes.

"For Arceus' sake!" he shouted, clearly ticked off. Veeria flinched and backed off.

"Vieille?" she asked quietly. He glared at her.

"What do you want?!" he asked vehemently. "Couldn't you see that I was sleeping?" Veeria backed up a bit more.

"I... I..." she stammered. Vieille proceeded to hurl a purplish orb at her. The attack hit her paw, causing her to jump back with a cry.

"V-Vieille?" she whispered, now shaking slightly in fear.

"Go away," he growled. And with that, he turned over again, closing his eyes. Veeria felt tears come to her eyes as she turned and ran from the room, wanting to get as far away from him as possible.

"Woah, Veeria, what happened?" Rina asked as Veeria passed. Veeria didn't stop and instead dashed out into the open and away from the house that contained Vieille.

Rina stared after her. She smirked and lifted a paw up, creating a snapping sound with her digits as if cueing something.

* * *

As Veeria fled, she began to reminisce about the short but powerful time she and Vieille had spent together. So many things had happened that she couldn't believe it all occurred within a single week. Her thinking only caused more tears to surface.

Veeria ran and ran, not bothering to be careful about the pokemon she was passing, or to even check were she was. It wasn't until she barreled into another pokemon, causing her to fall down painfully, did she stop. Veeria ignored the stinging pain and began to get up, only to be stopped by a blue paw. She looked up into the anger-filled eyes of an all too familiar looking Riolu.

Her eyes widened and she was about to scream when he shoved his paw over her mouth, muting her. "Say anything and I'll kill you," he threatened. Veeria began to shake with fear as she glanced around. In her haste, she hadn't bothered to notice that she had left the main parts of town. The area was completely devoid of any other living being.

The Riolu started off with a punch that felt like a boulder being dropped on her body. Veeria managed to hold in a scream as she was knocked onto her back. She didn't have time to even try and get up before she felt the next hit. He began kicking at her grounded form ruthlessly. Veeria had to bite down on her tongue to prevent a scream from escaping her lips.

He picked her up by the scruff, hoisting her body into the air. Veeria could feel tears streaming down her cheeks as she was left to this Riolu's mercy. He placed a palm on her chest, preparing another attack. Veeria attempted to use Aera in some way, but found that she couldn't, most likely because she was too afraid. An orange beam slammed into her chest, and she was blown far back, causing her to hit a stalagmite. She slumped to the ground, pain coursing throughout her entire being, as blood trickled from various cuts on her body. She could taste blood as well - She must have bit down on her tongue a bit too hard. Black danced at the edges of her vision, which she was okay with. Unconsciousness was a welcome respite from the pain for her.

The last thing Veeria noticed before blacking out was her Gracidea, lying a few feet away.

* * *

**Re-write completed. (For new viewers, I went back and re-wrote the ending parts of the chapter because it really didn't make much sense.)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Well, I finally took a look at the poll, and to my pleasant surprise, there were actually some responses! Here are the current statistics:**

**Veeria x Vieille: Yay or nay?**

**Yes: 4**

**No: 0**

**It turns out, people apparently like the idea of these two Eevees getting together. I made the poll a blind poll so that the results wouldn't inspire any bias. Frankly, I feel that they're adorable together, but I haven't yet decided if I want to have them get together. The poll will ****not**** ensure the decision, but I will try to comply with people's opinions. If you want to vote on the poll, go here: u/6004631/8-Bit-Eevee# and click on "Vote Now."**

Vieille shot up in his nest as realization hit him. His heart sank as his mind replayed the scene that had just unfolded before him. 'Oh Arceus, what did I do?' he asked himself, eyes widening. He got up on weak legs, focused only on the fact that he had just attacked Veeria, and the look on her face after.

'What am I supposed to do?' he wondered. He wanted to apologize, somehow, but he certainly couldn't show his face near her for a while to come. 'Maybe I should wait until she comes to find me," he thought. Then he shook his head and growled. 'No. I need to go to her. I don't care if she won't forgive me... I just need to tell her that I didn't mean to snap at her like that.' He nodded and left the room, pausing when he saw Rina sitting on her stone couch.

"Jeez Rina, is that thing even comfortable?" he asked. Rina chuckled.

"It really isn't as bad as you think," she answered. Then she frowned. "By the way, Veeria ran past here a few minutes ago, crying her eyes out. Do you have any idea what could've happened?" Vieille flinched and winced.

"Actually... Yes," he replied. He told her of how she had awakened him, and of his snapping at her after.

"You really screwed up this time Vieille," she said when he was done. He nodded.

"No kidding."

"So what are you going to do about it?" Rina asked.

"Easy. I'll go find her. Just like exploring, right?" he replied, leaving immediately in quick haste. He ran out into the underground town and began his search for the friend he had carelessly neglected.

"Veeria!" Vieille shouted out, listening for a response. He glanced around, looking for the sight of shining silver fur. "Veeria! Where are you?!" He dashed through the maze of streets, too intent on finding her that he didn't even think to ask around for her location. He ran through market, past the fighting arena, and eventually making an entire round around town, not catching a single glimpse of his friend. He had been searching for an hour; he was starting to get worried.

"How could I be so stupid?" he asked himself. "Something bad could've happened to her..." He ended up on the outskirts of town, in a completely barren landscape of rugged stone. No pokemon were around, so Veeria couldn't possibly be there. He turned, shaking his head, and went off to search somewhere else. He failed to notice a pink flower, belonging to the very pokemon he was seeking out.

Vieille searched around more carefully during his second round. He stopped to ask if any pokemon had seen her, but every time, he got the same reply. Vieille looked more carefully when he arrived at market once more, heading into each shop as he scanned the area for the telltale sign of silver. After re-searching the market, he dashed off towards the arenas once more to investigate.

The arena was relatively empty. Few pokemon were offering themselves as opponents, and there were no pokemon sitting around to spectate. He gave up after a couple minutes and left.

He had now burned two more hours in a hopeless search. His paws were aching and he was breathing heavily from running so much. Now that he had reached his limit, he slumped down on the ground, ending up on the same stone field as he had been on an hour ago.

"Veeria... Where are you?" he asked quietly, worried out of his mind. He shook his head. They never should have come here. But if they didn't, he would've died...

'Veeria could be dead. Or worse,' he thought. 'We shouldn't have come here.' He sighed and got up, deciding it was better for him to continue looking for her rather than sitting around worrying. As he lifted his head, he gasped at the sight in front of him.

Veeria's Gracidea. How had he not noticed it before? He delicately took it in a paw. It was definitely hers.

'That meant she must've been here at some point!' he concluded. Then he frowned. 'But how come her Gracidea was just sitting here? She couldn't have just forgotten it, or accidentally dropped it.'

Vieille paced around, trying to come up with some answer. His mind drew a blank and he sighed in defeat, heading back to Rina's house with Gracidea in hand. He had to get the opinion of someone else.

* * *

"Tell me what you know about Rina!" the Riolu shouted, kicking Veeria again. Veeria was crying, pain coursing throughout her entire being.

"I don't know what you mean!" she coughed out, earning another kick.

"Lies," he growled. "You and I both know full well what I mean. I suggest you better tell me all her dirty little secrets." He brought a palm down on Veeria's chest, forcing the air from her lungs. As she lay, gasping for air, he kicked her across the room. She hit the stone wall with a sickening thud, slumping down onto the floor.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" she screamed helplessly. "Please stop hurting me!"

"I'm going to beat some answers out of you, sooner or later," he said. "I suggest you make it sooner." Veeria whimpered, a fresh wave of tears rolling down her face. He rammed his foot into her sides, slamming her against the wall as he did so.

"S-Stop... Please..." Veeria pleaded. The Riolu only kicked her harder.

"Oh please. Stop. Giving. Me. The. Little. Kid. Act." he landed a blow each time he emphasized a word. Veeria still didn't know what in the name of Arceus he was talking about, so she simply took the hits, trying to stop her tears.

Finally, she was given a break from the torture. She burst into tears once more, sobbing quietly against the wall. 'Vieille's not going to save me... Rina's not going to save me...' she thought hopelessly. 'They have no idea where I am, and even if they did, they wouldn't come to help...'

The Riolu frowned at the pitiful Eevee. She didn't look like she was lying... Maybe he made a mistake. 'No,' he growled inwardly, shaking his head. 'Don't let yourself be deceived. She's just a great liar, that's all.' Still, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of guilt when he looked at the sobbing pile of fur, thinking that maybe, just maybe, he was wrong.

"Ready to give up yet?" he asked, raising a paw threateningly. Veeria nodded furiously, as she had given in since the torment began. She only wished she knew what he wanted. "Good. Then tell me, what's Rina up to?"

"I don't know!" Veeria screamed, enraging the Riolu.

"Lie to me one more time, and I swear to Arceus I'll kill you," he spat, slamming his paw into her as many times as he could, using force palm each time. Tears continued to stream out of Veeria's closed eyes. At this point, death sounded like a good thing to come to her.

"I don't know anything! I don't even know what you're talking about!" she screamed one last time. The Riolu's eye twitched and he slapped her across the face.

"Oh yes you do," he growled. "Tell me now. Where does Rina get the items to cheat in battle?" Veeria's eyes shot open.

"Rina... cheats in her battles?!" she exclaimed.

* * *

"Rina!" Vieille shouted, stepping into her stone home.

"I'm over here," she called from the next room. Vieille followed her voice, entering a brightly lit circular room, with stone furniture that seemed to be carved out of stalagmites. "Have you found Veeria?" Vieille shook his head.

"Not yet," he answered. "But I did find this," he said, producing the pink flower.

"What's that?" Rina asked, jumping down from the stool she had been sitting on.

"A Gracidea. Her Gracidea," he replied. "She couldn't have just lost it. Something must've happened."

"Well... Do you have any idea where she could be?" Rina asked, looking up at the ceiling thoughtfully. He shook his head.

"Not a clue. I've searched all of town," he said. "This is the only trace of her anywhere."

"We could get the guild here to search for her," she suggested.

"I don't have enough poke," Vieille said. "Besides, I don't like guild pokemon much. They think they're so heroic, but they won't do anything without a huge reward in return," he grumbled. Rina nodded, though she didn't share the same opinion.

"So," Rina said, clapping her paws together. "We have no idea where Veeria is, the only clue we have is this Gracidea, and it doesn't even seem to tell much about where she could be." Vieille nodded.

"I found it way on the outskirts of town," he offered.

"Oh?" Rina asked. "Could you describe the area?"

"The ground was filled with holes. The terrain was rough and hard to walk around, and it was completely deserted," he supplied. Rina nodded.

"Sounds to me like you ended up near some old mining spots," she commented. "I couldn't imagine why anyone would go there though..."

"She did sort of run off because of me..." he speculated. Rina nodded, deciding now was the right time to confront him.

"You're really stupid Vieille, you know that?" she asked. Vieille blinked.

"Pardon?"

"How could you neglect Veeria like that, and then go as far to attack her?" she asked. Vieille flinched and stayed silent. "You know how shy and insecure she is just as well as I do. We both know that you're her only real friend." She paused. "Sorry, am I being a bit too harsh?" Vieille shook his head.

"No... Keep going," he told her. In a whisper, he added, "I deserve it."

"Veeria told me everything. When I asked her about her parents, she dodged the question, leading me to believe that they died," Rina continued. "So that means you're the only she has in this world." She decided to leave out the bit where Veeria admitted she thought of Vieille as more than a friend, thinking it was personal and she shouldn't intrude on her business. "So, Vieille, what are you going to do now?"

"I'm going to fix this," he resolved. "Even if I can't, I will." he paused. "Do you know where she could be?"

"Well... Does she have any enemies?" Rina inquired. Vieille decided that the whole business with Heatran wouldn't be important here, so he had to think for a while before his mind settled on a Riolu about the same age as Rina.

"Yes. Your brother," Vieille replied. Rina nodded.

"So...?" she asked, though she already knew the answer.

"We should check his livings?" Vieille suggested. Rina nodded.

"Because?"

"Erm..." Vieille looked up. "...I really don't know."

"He's still mad at losing to me," she finished for him. "He's like that. He's probably taking his anger out on poor Veeria."

"How can you be so sure?" Vieille asked. Rina shrugged.

"He's done things like this before," she answered. "I wouldn't put it past him."

"Then let's go!" Vieille exclaimed. "We've already wasted enough time!" With that, he ran off, not bothering to ask Rina for directions.

Rina smiled and rubbed her paws together. 'Oh is he going to be surprised...' she thought, leisurely strolling away to follow him.

* * *

**Re-write complete. For you newer readers, same deal as last time. I'm glad I went back and re-did those parts now, because I now feel that the story can continue to flow without me getting this nagging feeling. Also, I'll try to make the plot go a bit slower, because I feel like things are happening pretty quickly.**

**And on a final note, it seems like everyone wants Veeria and Vieille to get together... I might do that, and I might not. In your review, if you choose to write one, tell me why you think they should form a relationship, or why they shouldn't. It just might 'encourage' my decision a bit *Wink wink nudge nudge*.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Apparently, Veeria and Vieille getting together in favor of is winning by 600%. Jeez. You people must be romantics or something~**

**But that's okay, because I am too XD.**

**I completely forgot to do a disclaimer last chapter, so here we go, before I forget: I do not own Pokemon, this fanfic is here purely for entertainment purposes, and it is not meant to infringe on any copyrights. Also, keep track of the story with the follow button, and give it some reviews as well! Enjoy!**

"You... didn't know?" The Riolu asked, clearly confused. Veeria, who was still on the ground, shook her head.

"No..." she replied. He looked at her thoughtfully. His gaze hardened once more.

"You're not lying?" he asked. She quickly shook her head.

"No! That's what I've been saying this whole time!" she answered. The Riolu contemplated her for a few seconds before sighing.

"All right. I suppose I believe you," he said. "Now then, I bet you want to know what's going on." Veeria nodded.

"Is Rina really a cheat?" she asked.

"I believe so," he replied. "Not only that, but Rina's the nastiest sister anyone could ever have." Veeria blinked.

"Hold on... Aren't you the more villainous one?" she asked. He sighed.

"Everyone thinks so, yes," he answered. "Everyone believes the lies that she feeds them. It's really Rina who's up to no good, rather than me."

"You just beat the life out of me without a second thought," Veeria pointed out blankly.

"That was when I was under the impression that you had something to do with her," he countered. "Besides, I'm not beating you down right now, am I?" Veeria shuddered.

"I guess not."

"Rina... She's managed to create the image of a righteous fighter for herself, and framed me into the lowliest of the low," he continued. "I can't say that I'm heroic or anything, but I can say with certainty that Rina's a bottom feeder. She does lots of nasty things around her, and lays the blame on me for it. Arceus knows what she's trying to do."

"What about that time when I first came here?" Veeria asked. "You did sort of try to kill me. Rina saved me."

"I don't know much of what happened myself," he defended. "But I do know one thing: There are quite a few psychic types around who'll offer their... 'services', shall we say." Veeria nodded slowly.

"So you were..."

"Yes, hypnotized, I think so," he replied. Veeria frowned.

"What about that time you lost to Rina in a fight? You stormed off, muttering something," she said. Veeria had to admit it wasn't a very convincing piece of evidence, but she simply didn't believe that Rina was what this pokemon had described her as.

"Would you want to lose to someone like her?" he asked. Veeria didn't reply. "I thought not. Besides, everyone there would've given me crap about it. They all hate me, because of her."

"Can't your parents do something about it?" Veeria asked. To this, he laughed.

"My parents! Sure, that'll happen as soon as you learn to fly!" he exclaimed. Veeria frowned. 'I do know how to fly... sort of,' she thought. "My mother's dead. My father is almost never around, because he's out in the world taking jobs for criminals who pay high. So he's exactly like Rina."

"Oh," was the only thing she could say.

"So, have I convinced you?" he asked.

"Not really. But I don't really have any choice but to believe you, do I?" she replied. He chuckled.

"Nope." With that, he reached out a paw to her. Veeria flinched at the gesture, nervously placing her own paw on his after some hesitation. His paw curled around hers as he pulled her up into a sitting position with a soft yank.

The more she thought about it, the more Veeria began to believe him. It seemed to make sense, and maybe Rina being a dishrag could explain why Vieille had been acting strangely recently.

"...Hello?" the voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Eh?" Veeria asked.

"Your name?" the Riolu repeated.

"Do I have to tell you?" she asked, her voice dropping.

"Well, usually, when someone tells you their name, you should return with your own," he explained.

"You told me your name?" Veeria asked, stupefied. He rolled his eyes.

"While you were in dreamland, yes. My name is Ryos."

"V-Veeria," she said, introducing herself. Ryos nodded.

"That's a nice name," he commented.

"Everyone seems to think that," she mumbled, before releasing a cough. "So... What are we supposed to do?"

"Wait. You're in no condition to do anything, really," he said. Veeria nodded.

"True..." she agreed.

"Rest now. I'll wake you when-" Before he could even finish his sentence, Veeria fell over onto the stone floor, out cold. Ryos blinked. "Huh. I must've been too rough with her."

He sighed. Taking his gaze off the shiny Eevee, he stared out a hole that served as his window. 'Just what are you up to this time, Rina...?' he asked.

"Vieille! Wait! You don't even know where you're going!" Rina shouted, following Vieille in a high speed chase.

"So? I don't need to know! All I need to do is find Veeria!" he replied.

"You can't find her if you don't know where to go!" she shot back, frustrated.

"That's why you're here, right?" he asked.

"Well, I need to be in front of you to show you around!" Rina pointed out. She didn't get a reply from the Eevee, who only sped up, darting around aimlessly. Rina sighed and put on another burst of speed, attempting to catch up to him.

"You can really run, for a non-fighting type," she complimented as she fell in step next to him. All she got in reply was ragged breathing. Rina finally managed to take the lead and began to direct Vieille towards the place where Veeria could possibly be located. As she dashed through the town, dodging pokemon and jumping stones, Vieille struggled to keep up.

'I really need to rest,' he thought, beginning to taste blood within his throat. 'But I need to find Veeria first. Then I can stop.' But no matter how many times he told himself to prioritize his search for Veeria, the thought of a respite, no matter how short, sounded to be a great idea. He got his wish to stop right there and then, though not in the way he had imagined.

Before Vieille knew it, he was lying on the ground, bruised from tripping over some stray rocks. Luckily, it was then that Rina decided she should see how he was doing.

"Are you okay?" The golden Riolu asked.

"Not... Really..." Vieille panted through deep breaths. He coughed a few times, parched and in need of a drink.

"Let's take a break then," Rina suggested, plopping down next to him. Vieille shook his head.

"Let's not," he dissented. "We need to find Veeria." Rina sighed.

"Vieille, you look and sound terrible. How would Veeria feel if you died while trying to rescue her?" she inquired. Vieille was about to respond when he was attacked by another bout of coughing, this time hacking up a handful of red internal fluid.

"Fine," he grumbled. "I'll rest for a bit." Rina nodded.

"Good." She then brought her paw down on the top of his head, knocking him out immediately. After making sure that nobody had seen what she did, she dragged Vieille to a crevice in the stone wall to their left and shoved him inside. "Sorry Vieille, but I'm not sorry. I've got a job to do." She chuckled and kicked his body before turning back to the road and walking off.

* * *

**Short chapter this time, sorry about that. I'm sort of losing my flare for this story. I don't like the writing style used throughout most of it, and how fast things are going either. But no worries, I will not discontinue the story. I strive to stick to the things I write, for the readers who enjoy seeing what I do. That's why I won't discontinue the story, even though I feel like it's drawing a blank. Also, I really like Veeria and Vieille's characters, so I wouldn't dare delete their story. Oh, one more thing. I'm going to rename this fanfiction, because I hate the name. So don't be confused when this story is replaced by something else on your reading lists.**


	13. Chapter 13

**What's this? Another name change? Yep, I also hate the name I came up with most recently. In other news, if you're confused as to why I even made these two come here in the first place, it'll all make sense soon enough... Heh...**

Ryos sighed. Veeria had not woken for over an hour. He periodically checked up on her vitals; though they were always normal, he still began to feel worry eating away at him. He sighed again.

'Is she really telling the truth?' he asked, the thought popping out of nowhere. It was then that he realized Veeria was the source of her worry; not because of her state of health, but the possibility that she could be lying. 'She could be lying. She could be my enemy,' he thought.

'But she could also be telling the truth, which would make her my ally... I think.' He sighed again and shook his head, deciding not to linger anymore on the issue and instead trust his instincts, which told him to trust Veeria. Even so, some doubt lingered within his mind, sending him back into a spiral of suspicion and belief.

His thoughts were interrupted by a loud crashing sound. His gaze, which he had unconsciously focused on the ground, snapped up and towards the source.

'What could that have been?' he asked himself, moving to go investigate.

"Hello!?" an unmistakably pristine voice called. Ryos froze. "I know you're in here... Ryos." Ryos gulped silently, feeling his heart begin to beat faster. A silence followed. Rina was here, Veeria was unconscious, and wherever her Eevee friend was, he wasn't there to help.

Ryos, not knowing what to do, stayed silent.

"You better show yourself now," Rina's voice echoed. "Because I'll find you soon enough. And you won't like it when I do..." Ryos shuddered. Rina was absolutely correct; he would not like it at all.

The cornered Riolu quickly surveyed his options. He glanced at Veeria, and then at the blank room surrounding them both. There was nothing he could use, no way to escape. He couldn't fight Rina, and neither could the unconscious Eevee. There was no way out of the situation.

* * *

Vieille woke to find himself in an incredibly uncomfortable position. He wriggled around, pressed up against a stone wall on either side. After a few seconds of struggling in vain, he stopped to wonder how he got there.

The last thing he remembered, he had been with Rina and...

His recollection of the events that had occurred flooded his mind. His first question was one of betrayal.

'Why would she do that?' he asked himself, with a frown. The second was one of curiosity.

'Where is she now?' His third was one of worry. His eyes widened and he felt anxiousness well up within him.

'Is Veeria okay?'

He squirmed once more, trying to slide out of the stone nook. He took a sharp breath as a jagged stone poked into his side. After realizing that he wouldn't get out without some injuries, he took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and shoved himself forward with all his strength.

He felt his side, face, and a paw spike with pain as daggers of rock cut him. He lay on the ground, waiting for his discomfort to abate for a few seconds. After completing that task, he quickly rose to his paws and looked around.

The area was completely bare of any other pokemon. They seemed to be keeping to the indoors, for a reason Vieille didn't know. He started down the barren streets, unsure of where to go.

'How am I going to find Veeria now?' he wondered. Just then, he spied a timid looking Aipom shuffling down the path towards him, gazing around.

"Hey! You over there!" Vieille called, getting the Aipom's attention. He jumped a bit at the sound of his voice, and then took off. "Wait!" Vieille shouted, giving chase. He soon began to gain ground, and when he was just behind the monkey-like pokemon, he leaped and shoved him down, pinning him to the ground. Normally, he wouldn't resort to such measures, but the urgency of the situation called for it.

"What do you want?" the pokemon asked frantically.

"Do you maybe know who Rina is?" Vieille asked. The Aipom nodded quickly.

"Of course, everybody does!" he replied.

"I need to find her brother. Where's his home?" he asked.

"Keep following this street. It leads out of the inner part of town. He lives a good ways away." Vieille nodded and jumped off.

"Thank you!" he called, before dashing away to follow the Aipom's instructions.

The purple pokemon sat up and rubbed the side of his head with a paw. 'It didn't seem like that Eevee was with... him...' he thought. 'I should get inside before he arrives...' With that, he stood up and continued his slow walking, in the opposite direction which Veille had gone in.

Vieille ran along the deserted road, hoping that he wasn't too late to save Veeria. Soon, the last few buildings that marked the outskirts of town whizzed by. He continued down the beaten rock path, looking around for the shape of a house.

* * *

"Looks like I finally found you," Rina said with a sadistic grin. Ryos backed up a bit.

"What do you want, Rina?" he asked, trying to sound unintimidated.

"Her," Rina replied, motioning at an unconscious Veeria with her paw. Ryos blinked.

"Not me? You didn't come here for me?" he asked, bewildered. Rina snorted.

"Why would I want a useless piece of trash?" she asked. "No, that Eevee is what I'm here for."

"Her?" He turned to Veeria, glancing back to Rina.

"No, it's not like she's the only Eevee here," she said sarcastically. "Of course it's her. Hand her over, and I'll leave you alone."

Ryos seriously doubted that. "There's nothing else you want?" he asked, searching for an alternative.

"No," she replied. "There's not."

"And what would happen if I refused?"

"I think you already know the answer," she told him, with a steely gaze. He gulped.

If he didn't give Veeria to her, he would probably die. If he did, dying was still the most likely possibility. Now caught in a dilemma, his mind worked at a breakneck pace for a solution. Backing off was not an option, as it would endanger both him and the Eevee. Refusal didn't look as great either; the same things would happen, only in a different order. But if he did defy her commands, there was a slim chance he could make it out of this, and with Veeria to boot.

Ryos had no other option. He went on the attack, attempting to surprise her, by rushing her with an outstretched palm. Rina reacted impossibly quickly, by simply bringing up her forearm to block. A shockwave emanated from the contact point, rendered useless. Rina swept her forepaw across his chest, knocking him away. Ryos lessened his impact with the ground by performing a roll and springing back up to his feet.

Rina didn't make any move to attack yet. Ryos faced her silently, ignoring her occasional taunts in an attempt to lure him into attacking again. He then realized he couldn't beat her with sheer offensive power; he would have to retreat to the defensive side.

He beckoned for Rina to attack him, planning to use a move that he had worked on specifically to beat her. The move would allow him to retaliate with twice as much effectiveness as what he was attacked with. Rina, however, seemed to already know of his plans, and she stood in place, waiting for his attack.

With a sigh, he drew himself up to lunge at her.

That was when Rina ran forward, jabbing at him multiple times, paw glowing a faint purple. Ryos managed to block a few of her jabs, but the attacks still hurt nonetheless. When her attack had faded away, Ryos was breathing heavily. He felt as if he had been poisoned, body coursing with fire-like pain.

After giving his injuries a quick glance, he deduced that that was precisely what had happened. He turned to face Rina once more, though he knew it was hopeless. All he could do was stall her, until either he was defeated, or something else happened.

* * *

Vieille stood at the front of a lone stone home, looking the thing over. It was the only thing that passed as a den in sight, but still, he had his doubts. The only thing that had stopped him from dismissing it as a pile of rocks was the faint light shining from within.

With a deep breath, he pushed into the room. It was dark and quiet; he could see only the outlines of objects, and there was nothing to listen to save for his own heartbeat. A shaft of light lay on the opposite side. Vieille studied it for a moment, jumping back when he caught sight of shadows cutting across the beam. He dashed as quietly as he could towards the source, to be met with a scene he never would have imagined.

Rina, fighting her brother. Now that was not a surprise, but the male Riolu standing over Veeria as if he were protecting her was.

"You know you're going to lose, little brother," Rina taunted. "Just give Veeria to me now, and we'll leave it at that." Vieille blinked. He hadn't exactly grasped the exact details of the situation, but there was one thing he knew for sure: Rina was the enemy, and she was intent on hunting Veeria.

For that reason, he didn't hesitate to attack her with an unnecessarily large amount of shadowy blobs, hurling them all at her. Rina, being focused on Ryos, was hit directly by a relatively large amount of them. Even so, she didn't falter, and instead turned around slowly with nothing more than annoyance in her eyes.

She sighed. "You had to come bursting in here, didn't you?" she asked. "You know, you would've been safer staying out of this whole thing." Vieille eyed her warily.

"I can't believe you..." he began, anger coursing through his being.

"Can't believe that I tricked you?" she asked, grinning. "I can't believe you didn't notice. Arceus, Vieille, you must be an idiot." Vieille snapped, leaping at her with all the speed he could muster. She stepped to the side and rammed her fist into his body, shooting him straight into a wall.

While he was incapacitated, Rina lunged for him. Ryos took the liberty of intercepting her, blocking her chop with his forearms crossed in an "x" pattern. He held the stalemate for a few seconds before his defense crumbled, allowing a nick down his front.

At that point, Vieille had risen to his paws and was ready for another go.

"What is happening, exactly?" he asked Rina's brother, who seemed to now be an ally.

"There's not really any time to explain," he pointed out. "But you've already grasped who the enemy is. I'll tell you later." Vieille nodded, casting a worried glance back at Veeria, overjoyed that she was alright, but anxious because of her unconscious state. He felt a rush of wind, causing him to turn back to see his enemy-turned-ally fending off yet another attack from Rina.

"Pay attention during battle," the male Riolu growled. Vieille gulped and nodded quickly, aiding him by quickly summoning a barrier of psychic energy around them. Rina's brother sighed and dropped his stance, nodding a thanks to him. "My name is Ryos, by the way." Ryos then jumped at Rina, intending to slash at her. Claws of shadow formed on the tips of his paws, swirling ominously with a black aura.

Rina stopped the attack yet again with her infamous forearm technique. Ryos was forced to jump back, regain his balance, then quickly defend against her counter-attack, which was a move no other than counter. Vieille quickly activated his own protection mechanism, stopping her in her tracks.

Ryos sighed, joints aching with exhaustion. This was going to be a long match.

* * *

**Sorry so much for the delay guys! I've been really busy with stuff in life recently, which is why I haven't been able to update as much. Also, I've probably mentioned this before, but I feel like I've sort of been losing my touch with writing. That is, I felt that way until I began taking up one-shot writing rather than chaptered works. I think I've sort of just fallen out of love with this story in general, and I feel like it's gotten a bit blank, to be honest.**

**I'll see it to it's end though, because I'm one for finishing the things I start. I will be uploading the one-shot stories I've come up with though, so you can look forward to that!**


	14. Discontinued

**Hey, people who are still actually reading this,**

**I'm discontinuing the story... for now. I've decided that it's really not worth it to keep writing something if I'm not putting any real effort into it, which is why I decided to stop. I just don't like the fanfiction as a whole, so sorry if you wanted more.**

**Now, this doesn't mean I'm done with writing. I'll start something new and fresh, and see if I can finish that. **

**And who knows? Maybe I'll come back to this someday to see it to the end.**


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